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Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Ross Pilcher

Liam Boyce in Hearts injury boost but Robbie Neilson tempers Beni Baningime return expectations

Liam Boyce is back in training for Hearts and could be back before the end of the season.

The Northern Irishman suffered a huge blow back in August after suffering a cruciate knee ligament injury in a 3-2 win over St Johnstone - the second of his career. Boyce went under the knife and has been rehabbing since. He was spotted celebrating on the Hearts bench during last month’s 3-0 Scottish Cup fourth round win over Hibs at Easter Road.

Now manager Robbie Neilson has revealed that Boyce could be back in action before the Premiership takes its summer break in May. Lawrence Shankland has taken on the goalscoring mantle in maroon and has hit 20 goals this season already - the first Hearts player to do so since John Robertson in 1991/92. But fans will be excited at the prospect of Boyce and Shankland potentially linking up again as the Jambos approach the business end of the campaign.

However, Beni Baningime is a bit behind Boyce in terms of his recovery. The midfielder suffered the same injury last March after scoring in a 2-0 victory over Livingston, but will pass the one-year landmark on the sidelines and might not be seen until the start of the 2023/24 season.

Neilson said: "Boycie is back running which is great to see. Baningime's doing a little bit of running but on the alterG (anti-gravity treadmill) so he's a bit behind Boycie."

On whether Boyce could make a return before the end of the season, he added: "We're really hoping so, yeah. I think if things go to plan then he should be."

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