Former Rangers star 'not taking notice' of EFL job links

Hearts boss Steven Naismith is a reported target for a number of potential clubs in the English Championship after his tremendous start to management with the Tynecastle outfit.

The former Rangers striker has an extremely impressive 53.3 per cent win rate since taking the reigns in Gorgie, leading to several outlets reporting he is a target for club's in the English second tier.

Despite a shaky start to his reign, Naismith has guided his side to third place in the Scottish Premiership, a full 13 points clear of St Mirren in fourth. Last weekend's win over champions Celtic saw his reputation enhance even further and his side's current form will surely only amplify rumours of interest from teams in England if it continues.

Links to English Championship strugglers Millwall were mooted earlier in the week, with reports stating 'a number of clubs' in the south were 'keeping tabs' on the young head coach, however, Naismith has broke his silence on the links as he opened up on his career plans and his aims are for the club in the immediate future.

"Since I've retired from playing, I've had a picture of the route I want to take and what I want to do," explained Naismith. "Through my playing career, I had an understanding of the steps to take to be successful. This is my first year taking a team at senior level. It's the first step and it's probably a big first step.

"I could have made a choice to take an easier first step regarding the demand and size of club. I'm enjoying every minute of it at Hearts and our focus is on being successful. You get linked and your name gets put towards different stories at times. That either happens when you are doing really poorly and you're due the sack, or you are doing really well and people are noticing. In some respects it's nice to see, but I'm not really taking much notice of it.

"I'm at the very early stages of my managerial career. It takes time to get your point across and get your understanding of the players. We are in a good moment and we've done loads of hard work to get to this point. I want to continue that. The uncertainty of the football world is there and that is what it is, but I've experienced enough of it to understand what is good for me and what is not" added the 37-year-old.