Brian Laudrup insists he is intrigued to see whether Lawrence Shankland is capable of making a step up from Hearts.

The Scotland international has bagged 16 goals so far this campaign for Robbie Neilson's side and he recently took on the role of captaincy with Craig Gordon out injured.

Shankland is preparing to take on Rangers in midweek and ahead of the fixture, Laudrup has bigged up the frontman.

He wrote in the Daily Mail: "Rangers head to Tynecastle on Wednesday and in Lawrence Shankland, Hearts have the most on-form forward going into this fixture. With Alfredo Morelos struggling a bit in my view and Antonio Colak just coming back to fitness, I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.

"Of course, Morelos is out of contract at the end of the season. Whether with that in mind or not, Beale admitted on Saturday that he’d be looking for another striker. He followed up on Monday by saying there was a specific target he thought would be available in the summer - and confirmed it was someone operating outside of Scotland.

"Clearly, then, it isn’t Shankland, who’s foremost in his signing thoughts. But I’m interested in the idea of how the 27-year-old might handle a step into the Old Firm environment if the opportunity arose in the future.

"It’s all hypothetical, of course. But I see a lot to like about Shankland and evidence he could go on even further in his career."

Meanwhile, Rangers look set to be the centre of the biggest Scottish transfer story of deadline day as their move for Nicolas Raskin nears completion.

Gers boss Michael Beale stated that they were getting closer to a deal for the 21-year-old Standard Liege midfielder despite a “lot of competition” for his signature.

Ahead of the cinch Premiership match against Hearts at Tynecastle on Wednesday night, the Rangers boss was asked just how close the move was to completion and he said: “I’ve just seen it going across the bottom of the (television) screen that it’s done. That’s not true.

“He’s an excellent player, there is loads of interest in him, he has a lot of options I believe.

“He is someone who can connect the midfield and the forwards, he is technically a very good player. He can play as a six or an eight and he will be a good signing for someone.

“There is a lot of competition for his signature. He is a sought-after player in Europe, it is an eye-catching one because of his age and the fact that his contract is running down.

“He has a lot of people who like him, he is a player very well thought of in the Belgium national team set-up as well.

“I can’t confirm anything right now but we are closer, but it’s not guaranteed right this second.”

Swansea’s Morgan Whittaker was also a target for the Ibrox club but Beale said: “He will be staying at Swansea I believe.”