Hearts have decisions to make on a number of players who are coming to the end of contracts this year.
The Jambos have a number of players out of contract and available on pre-contract deals for other Premiership clubs, or further afield, ahead of next season.
The likes of Barrie McKay would be expected to move on, if that doesn’t already happen in January, but Liam Boyce and Jorge Grant have forced their way back into the Hearts XI and are performing well, so could see their deals extended.
The goalkeeping situation is an interesting one.
A club legend, Craig Gordon spent last season as understudy to Zander Clark but managed to oust the younger keeper earlier this campaign and has kept his place since.
Both are out of contract in the summer and manager Neil Critchley has previously addressed the situation with the pair.
Should Craig Gordon get a new Hearts contract?
At the age of 42 and potentially considering retirement, Gordon is quoted as being 50/50 on his Hearts future but could definitely consider international retirement.
Some fans are concerned that he is past his best, using the evidence of an error at Ross County, and there is a debate around whether he should be offered a new deal.
For Michael Stewart, there is no question. He insists Gordon has NOT gone backwards and would be handing him a contract straight away.
“I wouldn’t even hesitate,” he told the Premier Sports Social Club. “His reflexes and reactions have not diminished.
“Cross balls and kicking have never been Craig’s strength. They’ve never been part of his game that you’ve went ‘oh he’s brilliant at cross balls and great with the ball at his feet.’
“And by the way, I wouldn’t even be looking at things in the last sort of six months and saying that he’s had numerous howlers in terms of cross balls and the ball at his feet.
“He got so much criticism after Ross County for the 99th-minute goal. But see that ball into the box? I don’t think you can have a terrible go at him.
“He doesn’t know. He’s got a defender a foot in front of him.
“If you’re someone that’s assessing the situation and knows the game, you’re not getting aught up in the emotion of ‘we’ve just lost a 99th-minute goal, that’s his fault, I’m not giving him a new deal.
“You’re looking at the fundamentals and you go ‘actually, he’s not really done anything wrong there.
“His reactions and and reflexes have not diminished at all. Unequivocally, he’s getting a new deal.”
James Penrice on radar of clubs?
And one Hearts player who is potentially on the radar of other clubs is James Penrice.
The flying left-back is playing out of his skin at the moment and widely regarded as the Jambos best player this season following his free transfer switch from Livingston.
He should be targeting the Scotland squad and is likely to be attracting interest from elsewhere, says Stewart, who was asked if “many, many clubs” will be looking at Penrice.
“I’d imagine so, absolutely,” he said. “He’s doing brilliantly and he really is a standout.
“Over the course of the first part of the season for Hearts, he’s probably the standout player.
“If he continues like that, even though left-back is obviously a very strong position for the national team, he’s going to be knocking on the door.
“And I would imagine there will be clubs potentially sniffing about as well.”