Neil Critchley has slammed leaks about Cammy Devlin’s contract as ‘unacceptable’ and ‘inaccurate’ and says whoever is sharing information is not supporting Hearts’ best interests.
Reports on Friday claim that Devlin is a transfer target for clubs in England and in the USA, and detailed a release clause that would force Hearts to sell.
Tynecastle head coach Critchley insisted there had been no offers made for the player and expressed his unhappiness with whoever was leaking information about the player’s status.
“We’ve not had anything on Cam so that’s the first I’ve heard of it,” he said.
“What I would say is that certain information that has been leaked is unacceptable. Gossip and transfer rumours are one thing but leaking information that should be confidential to player, club etc goes beyond the line and doesn’t help anyone.
“It wasn’t accurate anyway.
“In terms of Cammy being linked to any other clubs, we’ve not had anything from any other club regarding Cammy.
“I’m not going to get into whether or not Cam has a release clause.
“It doesn’t help in terms of signing players, retaining players. Whoever has done that and wherever that has come from, I wouldn’t class that person as having the best interests of Hearts at heart.”
The Hearts boss made it clear he wants Devlin to stay, saying that the 26-year-old had worked his way to becoming a key member of the team.
“Cammy has been outstanding for us,” he said. “He’s been fantastic.
“And all you would have to do is see him training this morning and you would know it’s business as usual.”
Critchley did address the likelihood that Kye Rowles will leave Tynecastle this month for a move to MLS side DC United, saying that the defender was available to play against Aberdeen on Sunday but that the situation could change at any moment.
“Nothing’s been agreed at present so he’s still our player,” he said. “At this moment in time he’s available for Sunday’s game but it’s still Friday and there’s 48 hours until kick-off.
“He’s training and he’s available.”
Asked if Rowles wanted to go, Critchley paused before saying “He’s here and he’s our player. He’s been a great servant for this football club and he’s played nearly every minute of every game for me.
“We’re not wanting him to go but sometimes these things are taken out of your hands.”
And there was also an acceptance that Liam Boyce is also likely to be in the final days of his Hearts career.
“Possibly,” the head coach said. “He’s in negotiations with another club right now.
“That’s something that he wants to do for his family. He’s got his future to think about and if that happens then we wish him all the best.”
While the majority of talk has been about exits at Tynecastle, Critchley said he had a clear idea of what he wants from the window and how changes to the squad will fit into the big picture he has in mind.
He said: “You have your long-term vision and I was speaking to the staff this morning about the end game and what you want the team to look like in the future with the identity that I want to bring to Hearts, and you work backwards from that.
“You’re not going to solve all of that in one window. Players contracts determine what you can and can’t do sometimes.
“I’m fully fixed on what we need to do right now because I’m under no illusions that if you don’t win games of football, you don’t get to the long-term vision anyway. It doesn’t happen.
“So we’re fully focused on Aberdeen, fully focused on what we need to do in the short term.
“We have a strategy of what we want to do in this window but also looking to the summer.
“You always have to plan ahead and we know where we want to go.”
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