Lawrence Shankland wants to cap off a "really strong season" by making a significant contribution to Scotland's progress toward Euro 2024.

The 27-year-old's first season with Hearts, whom he joined last summer from Belgian club Beerschot, was perhaps his greatest of his career as he scored 28 goals and was named captain.

In the triumph against Spain in March, Shankland's performance at Tynecastle earned him his first Scotland cap in two and a half years. He has since kept his spot in the team for this month's Euro 2024 qualifiers against Georgia at home and away.

"At the conclusion of a season, you have the opportunity to reflect on and evaluate it.

It was a tremendously good season for me. I was quite pleased with my efforts during the season, which were of a very high caliber.I was able to contribute to a great deal of goals. It was important to start off strong because it was also my first season with Hearts. I probably didn't anticipate getting the chance to be captain when I initially joined Hearts, but when it came up, I was eager to accept.I thought it would help me become a better player overall and a better person overall, and I thought I handled it extremely well.

Shankland has five Scotland caps, but he acknowledges that such a situation would have been unattainable when he was released by Aberdeen in 2017 and contemplating finding employment outside of sport. He soon joined Ayr and began to resurrect his professional life.

Reflecting on his ascent, he stated, "There have been many rejections along the way, but it really comes down to hard work and determination." You know what you want to accomplish in your job and what your long-term goals are.There have been times when I never would have imagined wearing the Scotland jersey. But if you simply buckle down and keep working hard, things will work out for you and you'll receive these opportunities.

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