Claudio Braga has emphatically stated he is 100 per cent committed to Hearts, as the club's player of the year shrugs off transfer interest from Lyon and Trabzonspor. The 26-year-old Portuguese forward, who netted 17 goals last season and won both the PFA Scotland and SFWA player of the year awards, is valued by Hearts at over £8m.
Braga focused on Champions League dream
With Hearts preparing for a Champions League second qualifying round tie against Sturm Graz in Austria on Tuesday night, Braga insists his mind is solely on the task ahead. It is Hearts' first step into the Champions League in 20 years and Braga's first ever experience of European competition.
Braga said: “We have a very, very important game, maybe one of the most important games for the club in the past years. I’m here and I'm completely focused on that. I'm a Hearts player and that's all you guys need to know and that's all I need to feel. I’m a Hearts player and I'm here 100 per cent. I'm trying to be as professional as I can and not care about that. I leave that to my agents.”
Talks with new boss Vrancken
New Hearts head coach Wouter Vrancken has discussed the speculation with Braga, who has two years remaining on his contract at Tynecastle. Braga confirmed: “Yeah, we had talks in the beginning, but I told him exactly the same as I told you guys. I’m here 100 per cent. I'm a Hearts player. I'm really happy. I was really happy here last year. I'm really happy now. Of course, there may be interest or not, but that's something that I can't control or can't focus on while I'm here. That would just be bad for me and for the club. I’m just focussing on Sturm Graz now.”
Hearts confident after Rayo Vallecano win
Hearts go into the tie as underdogs, but after pushing for the title last season and a 2-1 friendly victory over Conference League runners-up Rayo Vallecano, confidence is high. Braga said: “I feel like we have a good team. We proved it last year, a lot of new players but we proved it on Friday also that we can play against international teams and we can still do a good job. I think we need to be confident. We're not going to Sturm Graz to lose or to draw. We're going there to win and make the best result possible and then even better, hopefully, at Tynecastle. I feel we are confident in the locker room.”
