Three wise men guiding Conor Shaughnessy through life at Hearts

The Leeds United defender cannot help but learn from all three. He already feels improved despite only three appearances in maroon since signing a five-month loan deal. Thanks to Levein’s management and advice, plus guidance from Souttar and Berra, the 22-year-old’s footballing growth is being closely cared for.

“The manager has pulled me in a few times to have a casual chat about different situations in games, what can be done, discussing my views on why something happened and what can work better. It’s been really beneficial. I feel I’m learning with every game I play,” said Shaughnessy, speaking exclusively to the Evening News ahead of tonight’s Premiership match against Livingston.

“I did that with the coaching staff at Leeds. There was a bit of difficulty with the fact it was a foreign coaching staff. They gave a lot of advice on games, training, video clips and what areas can be improved on.

“John and Christophe are two very experienced players who are always talking on and off the pitch. Christophe is great with little things he has learned over time about how to deal with strikers. It’s small things that click in your head on the pitch. It’s been really beneficial working with the two of them.”

Shaughnessy’s three games in Scotland so far have produced a mixed bag. He enjoyed an outstanding debut against Livingston in the Scottish Cup, then suffered in an underwhelming team display three days later as Hearts lost at home to Dundee.

That led to him being left out against St Johnstone and being denied a chance to face brother Joe. However, the young Irishman recovered quickly to play an important role in Friday night’s stirring victory at Kilmarnock.

“I guess it’s been up and down. I had a good start against Livingston in the cup and it was good to put things right after the big loss the team suffered against them earlier in the season,” said the player.

“The Dundee game was a disappointment all round, for the team and me personally. We bounced back with a great result against St Johnstone and kept that going on Friday night.

“It would have been nice to play against my brother but it was more important that we won. I’m happy with that. We had a bit of a laugh about it – well, I had a laugh. He wasn’t too happy.”

Again, Levein’s influence in the aftermath of the Dundee match helped restore Shaughnessy’s confidence and keep him focused.

“I had a good chat with the manager after the Dundee game and the St Johnstone game,” he explained. “We looked to put things right and I came back into the team against Kilmarnock. I thought it was a pretty solid performance on Friday night so we want to continue that.

“We spoke about working on little things I can improve on, also the fact I hadn’t played a lot of games this season before coming here. That probably had an affect on me coming in and playing two games in such a short space of time.

“That’s just fitness and getting my legs back into playing games close together. I feel a lot better within myself and hopefully I can play as many games as possible now.”

He will certainly want to play Livingston again after a commanding performance in said cup tie. However, the West Lothian side represent a wounded animal at present. Since beating Hearts 5-0 in December, they have played seven games without winning. They arrive at Tynecastle Park on the back of five straight defeats, but Shaughnessy offered a note of caution to anyone who thinks tonight is a straightforward assignment.

“We aren’t going in over-confident. We know Livingston are a good side even though they are coming off the back of a few defeats. They will be up for it, especially after losing here in the cup a couple of weeks back.”

As is normal at Tynecastle, Hearts fans will be expecting victory. Shaughnessy appears to thrive on such an intense support.

“You can see it’s a massive club up here and the fanbase is unreal,” he said. “Being at Leeds has definitely helped me coming into this. Leeds is a big club with a big fanbase as well. Playing games there has helped me to come in and play in front of the Hearts crowd, plus deal with the social media and all the reaction. It’s all part of it. I don’t mind the social media. You have to take everything with a pinch of salt. I don’t read too much into anything. Whether it’s really good about you or really bad, you can’t believe it all.”

Chances of the defender remaining with Hearts beyond the summer in a permanent move would appear slim at the moment. However, another loan deal shouldn’t be discounted.

“We haven’t had that discussion yet. It’s just a loan until the end of the season,” he explained. “I’ve got two years left on my contract at Leeds, so I’m a Hearts player until the summer and then I’m back down to try and get into the team at Leeds.

“The standard of football is quite good up here. It’s very intense. Playing games week in and week out is helping me to prepare for Championship football, or hopefully Premier League football, with Leeds next season.”