Hearts could soon have some sort of link-up with Premier League success story Brighton.
The Jambos have insisted they will not be a feeder club to the Seagulls with their owner Tony Bloom in talks to invest and become a shareholder in the Tynecastle side, but clearly there will still be a link.
We gave an update on that yesterday with Bloom looking to buy 20 per cent of Hearts and complete a deal by this summer.
Hearts are already using Jamestown Analytics, the data analytics company founded by the English entrepreneur, and it brought them five signings in the January window.
But the same system may have just recommended one of their players to the Premier League side.
Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images
Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images
Brighton monitoring Hearts youngster Alfie Osborne
Alfie Osborne is one of a number of highly-rated Hearts youngsters in the academy at present. Currently with the Scotland under-17s squad, he captained them in the recent draw with North Macedonia.
The 16-year-old midfielder is highly-rated in the Tynecastle side’s academy, has already been playing in the Lowland League for the B team and was with the first-team for a pre-season friendly under previous Steven Naismith last summer.
But other clubs are now taking notice.
According to the Daily Record, Brighton are watching the player and he has already been approved by the same Jamestown algorithm Hearts use.
Seagulls scouts will watch him when Scotland 17s take on Romania tomorrow and Liechtenstein on Tuesday.
What Hearts have said on Osborne
After calling him up for that Fleetwood friendly, Naismith said: “He’s 16-year-old, can play centre-half or centre-mid.
“As you can see, the size of his presence, he’s got good feet for somebody so big and young. He’s got a great attitude but I must say a lot of the boys who have come in full-time this year have got that attitude – a drive and a determination which is a good sign for us.
“He’s a young kid. He’s trained with the first-team a few times. There are quite a few young players that probably could have had the opportunity but I think a bit of circumstance [stopped it]. He’s done well when he’s been around the first-team.”