BBC Sports Distraught Shankland sat in Hearts dressing room in silence and wouldn’t speak to anyone after Brugge penalty blunder.
The Jambos hitman blasted over from the penalty spot as his drought in front of goal this season goes on.
On Thursday, Craig Gordon knew he couldn’t elevate his teammate Lawrence Shankland’s spirits.
Not at that point. The 41-year-old understands from experience that it is preferable to wait till the proper time. From one Jambos captain to the next, the goalie will guarantee the struggling striker that goals would resume as soon as night follows day. Shankland sat silently in the Jan Breydel Stadium’s away dressing room following his defeat to Cercle Brugge. He had shut down following the latest blow in a gruelling season.
The Premier League’s best scorer, who had only scored once in 20 games, reached a new low by missing a penalty in a 2-0 Conference League defeat. Fans crowded behind the goal Shankland had just cleared were furious at the 29-year-old.
The vitriol that came down from the away end following the missed penalty, as well as when the players went to celebrate them at full time, was beyond nasty. Shankland stated last week that this seems to be his final season at Tynecastle, and fans took advantage of the chance to advise the captain to go now, although in rather more colourful language.
Gordon maintains that the hitman is still loved by his teammates, despite opposition from certain supporters. Shankland is particularly affected by Hearts’ current situation as Aberdeen approaches.
The keeper exited from the dressing room and stated, “Lawrence never talked to anyone. He’s very upset, to be honest. He’s our best player. Is there something I can say to him? Yeah. Whether you are a captain or not, going through something like that may be isolating at times. You just don’t feel like whatever you do is going well.
“I can tell him whatever he wants. He’ll eventually start scoring goals. He is only four goals behind the league’s leading scorers, who only have five. He still has the remainder of the season to strive to be the leading scorer. He’s not far behind; a hat-trick in one game puts him right back in the mix.
“If there’s one thing to look at, perhaps he can focus on that and work towards becoming that man again. He’s in more pain than anyone. I genuinely feel sad for him. He’s still doing his best. He’s attempting to replicate his previous seasons’ performances.
“It just isn’t coming off right now. He just needs some confidence. I saw it during training. I’ve watched him have some fantastic training sessions in the previous several weeks and months.
“It just hasn’t occurred for him on the pitch. But it is still there. He needs to keep believing in that, and we surely believe in him. The sooner he reaches his aim, the better.
“I did not even watch the penalty. I was hoping that would be the one to go in and give him a boost of confidence.
“I know the other boys adore him and that we’ll be there to pick him up when he’s going through a hard time. He will be back scoring goals, whether on Sunday or later. “It will happen.”
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