Heart of Midlothian

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Alexandros Kyziridis has made Scottish football sit up and take notice since arriving at Hearts. And his fine form hasn't gone unnoticed in his homeland - but a cap call continues to elude the 25-year-old.

The Greek winger has quickly become an integral player for Derek McInnes' side, scoring five goals and contributing five assists in league and cup for the Premiership leaders.

Kyziridis, a summer arrival from Slovak side Zemplin Michalovce, has never played for his country - but should he be lining up against Scotland this weekend?

With Greece already out of the running for a World Cup place, they complete thier qualification campaign at home to Scotland and away to Belarus in the coming days.

And Kyziridis' omission from Ivan Jovanovic's squad is a "surprise", according to Greek football expert Stephen Kountourou.

He told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast: "I was quite surprised he didn't get called up, to be honest.

"He was one of the few players that wasn't given an opportunity this time round. I hope that Jovanovic does [call up Kyziridis].

"Hearts this season is a fantastic story and he's been brilliant for them. And just to have that option on the wing where we, even with really talented players who have a lot of potential, we still lack a lot of depth in that position.

"I would have loved Kyziridis to come for this international break to give him some really valuable experience.

"I can understand Jovanovic not wanting to kind of disrupt the team so much by bringing in loads of new players out of the blue and excluding players who have been there under him since he took charge.

"But yeah, he hasn't been called up this time and I really hope he does in the near future."

Life is pretty sweet for Hearts fans.

The Derek McInnes era is off to a soaring start and the Tynecastle side are perched at the top of the Premiership.

Tony Bloom's investment and Jamestown Analytics recruitment company are helping to fuel the Jambos' rise amid bold predictions of at least a second-place finish this term.

The international break provides the chance to pause for breath and reflect after a whirlwind few months at Tynecastle.

So, if you could change one thing about Hearts' season so far, what would it be?

Tell us here.

Hearts defender Craig Halkett is "fizzing" to be suspended for the upcoming Scottish Premiership meeting with Aberdeen, questioning some of his bookings this season. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Former Aberdeen goalkeeper Joe Lewis doubts leaders Hearts' chances of winning the Scottish Premiership. (Record), external

Kazakhstan winger Islam Chesnokov, who is expected to join Hearts from Tobol, says his future "will become clear soon". (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Read Thursday's Scottish gossip

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A shivering Claudio Braga would have been forgiven for wondering what he had let himself in for.

The forward had just swapped life in Portugal for a punt at progressing his career in Norway. He arrived without a contract and was taken aback by the freezing temperatures and snow-bound surroundings.

But that move to third-tier Moss in 2022 proved the making of Braga, who is now taking Scottish football by storm with shock leaders Hearts.

Braga netted 23 goals in 58 appearances for Moss, helping them to promotion, and was similarly impactful after joining Aalesunds in Norway's second tier, racking up 14 goals and nine assists in 41 games before being whisked to Tynecastle.

Recalling that first move abroad, Braga told BBC Scotland: "It was tough of course. My family support me a lot but in the beginning, the culture shock was a big one, especially the weather.

"I changed to Norway in January so it was the peak of the snow and really, really cold negative degrees.

"I've seen snow a little bit standing on the mountain in Portugal, but had never seen snow falling before I went to Norway. So it was kind of a shock to go there and see all that and when I got there I was alone and just trying to see what happened.

"When I moved to Norway I didn't even know how much I was going to earn or if I would stay at the club because I was not even with a contract. So when I went there, it was a risk and it has paid back, to be honest.

"I was really well treated by the clubs there, the people around the clubs, so I'm grateful for the guys that helped me become what I am today because they helped me a lot.

"With Moss we won the league and then I moved to Aalesund and, yeah, it was a really good thing."

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Former Hearts, Raith Rovers, Leicester and Dundee United coach Gary Kirk has died just days after being appointed as Dunfermline's head scout.

Kirk, 75, who also had a stint as Cowdenbeath manager and spent a large part of his career working alongside Craig Levein, passed away while attending a match in England on Monday.

A statement from Dunfermline read: "A well-known and hugely-respected figure in Scottish football, Gary had only last week joined the club as our full-time head scout for the UK and Ireland and sadly passed away last night while taking in a match south of the border.

"Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time."

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Hearts forward Claudio Braga's fruitful form has been rewarded with the Scottish Premiership player of the month award for October.

The Portuguese netted a double in the 3-0 win at Kilmarnock and scored the equaliser in the 2-2 draw away to St Mirren as Hearts picked up 10 points from 12 last month.

Braga succeeds team-mate Lawrence Shankland as player of the month and makes it a Hearts double for October after Derek McInnes took the manager prize.

Braga, 26, has nine goals in 17 games across all competitions for McInnes' men since his summer move from Norwegian second-tier side Aalesunds.

Greg Playfair
Fan writer

Had you asked at the end of last season if I would take Hearts being seven points clear at the top by the November international break, I might have thought I was speaking with Vladimir Romanov.

It says a lot about how far this team have come in a short time that supporters were bemoaning the fact we could only draw with a Dundee United side that moonlights as a Harlem Globetrotters tribute act, given their sheer physicality and height.

The reality is, had any Hearts fan been offered four points from home and away games against Jim Goodwin's side in the first half of the season, you would have gladly shaken on that.

The international break comes at a good time and allows us to prepare properly for the trip to Pittodrie on 23 November. That fixture will no doubt be difficult given our poor record at Pittodrie.

Craig Gordon has yet to feature for Hearts this season but what a story it could be if the 42-year-old gets the nod to start for Scotland in the World Cup qualifying double-header against Greece and Denmark.

Plenty of people have written off Gordon in his advancing years and he will be fired up to show doubters he still retains his talents.

At the other end of the pitch, Lawrence Shankland has deservedly earned a recall to Steve Clarke's squad.

I don't hold much hope Shanks will get many minutes of action as he will probably be fourth-choice striker despite scoring more club goals this season (10) than the other three - Lyndon Dykes, Che Adams and George Hirst - combined (nine).

Given the fairytale start to Hearts' season, here's hoping Gordon and Shankland can bring that Tynecastle stardust to the national camp and we're looking into the odds of the duo lifting the Scottish Premiership and World Cup trophies in 2026.

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Hearts' draw at home to Dundee United on Sunday was proof that Derek McInnes' Scottish Premiership leaders have "an almighty task" to stay there by the end of the season, according to former Tynecastle midfielder Michael Stewart.

The Edinburgh side's lead over Celtic was reduced to seven points after the reigning champions' 4-0 win over Kilmarnock.

Asked on BBC Scotland's Scottish Football Podcast if Hearts could win the title, Stewart said: "It's an almighty task. It would be very, very difficult.

"I've sort of gone on record and said that I think second place is a realistic target for Hearts and one that I think they're probably favourites for at this moment in time."

Stewart said United were "very good" at Tynecastle, with their front three of Zac Sapsford, Amar Fatah and Ivan Dolcek causing Hearts' defence problems.

He thought it showed that the Oisin McEntee-Harry Milne combination on Hearts' right was "makeshift" and "not a long-term solution", while the desire to force Pierre Landry Kabore into the team meant "they effectively played like a front four" and United "capitalised on the gaps".

Fellow pundit Billy Dodds thinks Hearts "might add one or two" signings in January but will have to shed some from a "top heavy" squad.

"For Hearts to sustain a run, though, is going to be really tough," the former United striker added. "They have a good squad, but I don't know if the squad is good enough to sustain it over the season.

"Because they're league leaders, teams are going to lift their game against them and you could see that with Dundee United.

"I think they'll cruise third, they'll have a chance of finishing second. Do I think they'll win the league? I have to still say no."

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

Alexandros Kyziridis delivered another moment of class for Hearts on Sunday and looks increasingly like he could be a contender for player of the season.

Technically his curled shot against Dundee United was off target, coming back off the post and finding the net off the back of Dundee United keeper Yevhen Kucharenko, but Kyziridis once again demonstrated what a difference maker he is for Derek McInnes' side.

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Hearts manager Derek McInnes is confident his squad is equipped to deal with the absences of Beni Baningime and Craig Halkett.

The Tynecastle side travel to Pittodrie after the international break aiming to continue their superb unbeaten start to the Scottish Premiership season.

McInnes has been able to stick with a largely settled team this term, but Baningime missed Sunday's 1-1 draw against Dundee United with a hamstring strain.

"He did it late in the session on Friday morning," McInnes said of Baningime, who is likely to be out until December.

"I spoke to Beni on Friday night and he thought he was fine, so we had kind of planned for him being in the team.

"But Beni's never had a muscle injury before so he didn't really know what was happening and then his scan results came back that he had a tear, so he was ruled out.

"But we've got good players here. Players have been champing at the bit, ready for an opportunity.

"We're going to have to be without Beni for the next period of time and it's opportunities for others. We'll be fine in there, I'm not worried about that."

Defender Halkett will also be absent for the trip to Aberdeen after he picked up his sixth Premiership yellow card against United.

He is now automatically suspended for one match, but McInnes believes the depth in that area of the pitch will serve Hearts well.

"We should have got the foul in the first place, it was a foul on Stephen Kingsley but we don't get it," said McInnes. "Halkett was always going to get his sixth booking but it was just a matter of when.

"We're just disappointed that he now misses the next game and he knew it himself, you saw his reaction. I think it probably was a yellow card.

"We've got Frankie Kent back, we've got Michael [Steinwender] and we've got players like Jamie McCart. That's why we've got the squad we've got."

Sportscene pundits Michael Stewart and Billy Dodds discuss whether Craig Gordon should start in goal for Scotland in their vital World Cup qualifier against Greece on Saturday.

We asked for your views after Hearts played out a 1-1 draw against Dundee United on Sunday.

Here's what some of you said:

David: It was an off day, Cammy Devlin was playing in two positions most of the game and was the only player with plus marks. Players that came in for Beni Baningime played badly but they will improve over time, bad day at the office.

Ian: Still unbeaten, I'll take that. Not as assured a performance as we've seen. Definitely a "bad" day at the office but we are still top of the heap and undefeated so let's enjoy that.

Peter: It was inevitable that we would drop points, we didn't play to our potential. We are still top of the league and every other team would love to trade places with us.

Ian: Poor defensively. Caught out several times by United but poor judgement by their players cost them by running offside. Looking at our next five fixtures I can see Celtic being top by Christmas.

Watch highlights as Hearts and Dundee United play out a 1-1 draw in the Scottish Premiership.

Available to UK users only.

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Hearts head coach Derek McInnes tells BBC Scotland: "We weren't good enough to win the game today.

"We'll take the point. We had a wee bit of an off day and players are allowed that.

"We had a lot of attacking players we were bold with our team selection.

"We thought United might have played 3-5-2, which our selection would have caused problems. But they set up with two 10s and a counter-attacking threat, they did it very well.

"The game lacked our usual control. We got a bit more control in the second half but Dundee United still carried a threat. We just lacked a wee bit of quality and we needed to stay calm. We were a wee bit excitable at times. We played last five minute football for the majority of the second half.

"We just needed a wee bit more trust in what we do.

"The decisions were right from the referee, other than the three minutes of injury time. That was madness.

"We were constantly speaking to him about it, we were slow at getting the whole thing going at times. There should have been more.

"If that was Celtic or Rangers at the top of the league, there would have been a lot more than three minutes I can tell you that."

Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts dropped points for only the third time this season as Dundee United battled back for a draw at Tynecastle.

What did you make of Hearts' performance?

Share your thoughts.

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Hearts expect to have midfielder Ageu and goalkeeper Ryan Fulton back in contention so Calem Nieuwenhof and Finlay Pollock (both hamstring) are the only absentees.

Dundee United boss Jim Goodwin hopes to see Ross Graham and Max Watters (both hamstring) available again before the end of the month. Isaac Pappoe (knee) is out long term.

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Hearts skipper Lawrence Shankland is embracing the feel-good factor at Tynecastle and reminding his team-mates to relish their position at the top of the Scottish Premiership.

The Edinburgh side remain unbeaten in 11 league outings and have established a nine-point lead over champions Celtic, who have a game in hand.

"You need to enjoy these moments," said the 30-year-old striker. "I don't think anybody can really anticipate starts like we've had.

"The positivity around the squad and around the club at the moment is really good.

"In football you become accustomed to not getting too high and not getting too low. You need to find that middle ground and I think I've been all right at that throughout my career.

"It's just about keeping that level-headedness about everybody and staying humble and knowing that around the corner there's always a bump in the road."

Hearts have taken 16 points from six home games in the league, with Tynecastle packed out each time.

"It's always nice when the crowd are turning up in numbers to support us," said Shankland.

"I still feel we can get more from them and get that energy from the stands on the pitch. Especially for the bigger games, you can feed off it and it galvanises the boys.

"You can feel it when you're playing. It can really push you on in difficult moments and help us get results."

Hearts have hit a healthy 28 league goals, while Shankland leads the way with 10 in all competitions.

"It always helps when a lot of people are getting on the score sheet," he said. "That's something we've probably lacked over my time here.

"[Alexandros] Kyziridis and [Claudio] Braga have hit the ground running and then [Pierre Landry] Kabore comes in at the weekend and gets himself a double.

"You need goals coming from everywhere. We've had a lot of substitutes make a difference in games and we need that going forward."

Heart of Midlothian captain Lawrence Shankland has revealed how he tracked down a dietician to help him lose weight he "couldn't shift" and prompt his goalscoring return. (Daily Record)

Manager Jim Goodwin has confirmed Dundee United were on the trail of Pierre Landry Kabore before Hearts made the Burkina Faso forward an offer they could not compete with. (Daily Record)

Uche Ikpeazu last played for Hearts five years ago but is still so popular with the fans that the cult hero is still lauded by them - and gets perks such as a cut-price MOT. (The Herald)

Read the rest of Saturday's gossip.

Miguel Freckelton's disallowed goal in St Mirren's 2-2 draw with Hearts should have stood, according to the Scottish FA's key match incident panel.

St Mirren were 2-1 up in the game on 29 October when Freckleton added a third, but VAR intervened over an alleged impediment from captain Mark O'Hara on Hearts' Lawrence Shankland while in an offside position.

Referee Mathew MacDermid, who initially gave an on-field goal, reversed his decision after checking the footage.

All three of the KMI panel agreed the original decision should have stood.

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Derek McInnes has won a third successive Scottish Premiership manager of the month award after table-topping Hearts maintained their blistering unbeaten start.

The Jambos are nine points clear after three wins in October - against Hibs, Kilmarnock and Celtic - plus a draw at St Mirren.

"Any award, be it individually or collectively, is great for the club," said McInnes.

"It's reflective of the hard work that everybody puts in, so to be recognised for it is pleasing.

"We've had a brilliant first round of fixtures and now the focus is on the next round and trying to keep progressing."