 New Hearts striker Kevin Kyle revealed he had been hoping for an offer from Tynecastle from the moment Jim Jefferies left Kilmarnock and headed to Gorgie. Kyle managed to resurrect his Scotland career while playing under Jefferies for a year at Kilmarnock, until the veteran manager left Rugby Park in January. The striker was keen to stay in Scotland despite very attractive financial options in England and abroad being on the table. However, he was not that taken with an offer from Aberdeen. So Kyle, whose Killie contract expired the day after he helped the club stay in the SPL, was delighted when Jefferies finally made his move. The former Sunderland and Coventry striker said: "As soon as JJ phoned I wanted to push the deal through and couldn't get it signed quickly enough. I had a lot of offers, including from Greece and Turkey, and the one from Greece was very lucrative. I discussed it with my family but to be fair ever since JJ went to Hearts I was hoping he would buy me, and as soon as he phoned I dropped everything. I am over the moon and my little boy was buzzing when I showed him around the stadium today. My message to the Hearts fans is to forget about the season just finished and I will be trying my best to get Hearts back to where we should be in Scotland. I turned down a lot of money to come here but I look forward to playing for Hearts." Jefferies said: "He was in demand and I know other SPL clubs were after him, and he could have got a lot more money going to Greece, so that just shows how much he wants to play for Hearts. It has taken a wee while to get everything sorted out but I am delighted he has decided to join the club and I'm confident he will do well for us." |