Steven Naismith: Shankland is the league's best striker

The Hearts head coach spoke about consistency, Lawrence Shankland and Cammy Devlin's return. 

READ MORE: The Hearts juggernaut continues: Shankland half-century and points target

What are your thoughts?

I think it was deserved. I think there was a level of respect shown in the way they set up. The way the game played for the first 30 minutes, it was in the final third and they are in a low block. It’s then about us trying to break that down, as well as being organised behind the ball. I thought we created some good chances early on and then got a bit frustrated and forced it, gave away some fouls that killed the momentum. And then they had a couple of breakaways, probably because it was an uneven surface. They get the break of the ball and then they attack. At times we weren’t aggressive enough with our press but overall it was a pleasing first half. It was just the small details – moving the ball quickly enough in the second half to make a chance. The first goal in the game was always going to be massive and after that we controlled the game. The bit we need to get better at is scoring more goals and taking more chances because we need to score a few more goals.

Shankland is a real talisman for you at the moment?

He is at the peak of his career. His numbers, in all aspects of his game, are the best of his career. That’s partly down to us being a really good team, and him being a lethal finisher who has developed into an all-round forward who can use his strength.  He’s got the finesse, the touch and the calmness to take his chances when they come along. That’s probably one what we missed with our other chances. Kenneth had a good one and he put it over the bar. Our chances were probably a bit rushed and that’s when he showed that’s why he’s the best striker in the league.

He's now got 50 goals for Hearts?

It’s a brilliant achievement. He’s driven, he’s got drive, and you get that at different moments of your career. He’s got the Euros, he’s hunting down top goal scorers and he is enjoying his football. He’s in a good moment and as a group we’re in a good moment. Individually, we have got a lot who are playing at the top level.

READ MORE: Craig Levein: Hearts are by far the third-best team in Scotland

There haven’t been many goals in the first half of games and most are coming in the second. Why is this, is it down to mentality, stamina or figuring out the opposition?

The main thing is feeling teams out. The amount of games where we have come up against teams that do sit in and try to counter us, it’s hard. When you rush it and you start to panic, that’s when you cause yourself problems. We are good at working out, and we have been good at working out what’s working and what’s not. But it takes time. And I think we could be a bit better with our finishing and our final pass. It’s good to be winning these games when we are making more chances now than we did earlier in the season. Now it’s about taking them.

Is this the consistency you were aiming for at the start of the season?

Without a doubt. The challenge at the start of the season was juggling Europe as well. The demands on everybody in the squad are at their limit at that point, and it’s more difficult at the early part of the season. We have a group that are demanding of each other and the competition is there. But we can still get better. We want to finish the season as well as we can. This run is good but we need to get up for the cup game this weekend and then Motherwell after that.

Has the team learned lessons from last season?

They will have, definitely. We have learned lessons all season. We were passive in games, got hit with a goal and didn’t know how to deal with it, but we’re learning now. The small details are the things you need to improve on and because of those you can stand back and look at making big strides.

Good to have Cammy Devlin back in the squad?

He's done really well in the last few sessions on the pitch and his eagerness to get back involved was the defining marker. So that's good. Natty Atkinson and Kye Rowles will be back in training on Friday so they will join the group. It is really healthy competition. Everybody knows their role, they are all wanted and whether you are not getting minutes in the next few games everybody will get enough minutes to be happy throughout the season.