Lawrence Shankland has insisted he is comfortable at Heart of Midlothian as he vowed never to disrespect the club amid transfer speculation.

The striker - currently away on international duty with the Scotland squad - has been heavily linked with a move away from Tynecastle in the summer.

Shankland, 28, was also widely tipped to leave Hearts in January but remained in the capital, hitting 31 goals in all competitions.

However, Shankland has now branded speculation over his future as "noise in the background" as he insisted he would never disrespect the club after a positive period at Tynecastle.

"Honestly? I see it as noise in the background. If anything, it's a sign that I'm doing something right, Shankland told FourFourTwo.

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"It's not something I'm hyping up, so I just let it wash over me and concentrate on football. That will always be the priority for me.

"On top of that, I would never disrespect Hearts. They've been great for me, and I like to think I've been good for them in return."

The striker then added that Hearts feels like "home" after a period of moving from Aberdeen to Ayr United, Dundee United and then onto Beerschot in Belgium.

On whether he feels settled, Shankland explained: "I'd say so, yeah. I bounced around a little bit. Maybe I jumped at opportunities and experiences.

"But I do feel at home now and that can only be a good thing for your football.

"Having babies helps as well, even if it leads to a few sleepless nights!"