Newcastle United starlet set to be handed second chance by ex-Everton man following ‘tough’ loan spell

Kuol made the move to Tynecastle during the January transfer window in a bid to acclimatise him to the demands of first-team football. After impressing at the World Cup in Qatar, it seemed like the perfect destination for the teenager.

However, he has struggled for regular game time and has featured for just 200 minutes over eight appearances for the club. Speaking last month, Australian national team coach Graham Arnold described Kuol’s start to life in Edinburgh as ‘tough’ but backed the 18-year-old to show his quality.

“He's had a bit of a tough start at Hearts.” Arnold said. “The Scottish game, and the way that it's played, is completely different to Australia, so it's going to take a little bit of time for him to settle in with that and obviously learn that.

“I know the expectations of the kid are always very, very high, and going to Hearts I can imagine that was exactly the same, so it's a learning process for Garang and making sure that he can deal with it and we can be here to help him deal with it.”

And that opportunity could come in the final few weeks of the season following Robbie Neilson’s departure as Hearts boss. The Jam Tarts have lost five games in a row in all competitions and have replaced Neilson with Steven Naismith until the end of the season.

With two games of the season to go, the former Everton man has revealed he wants to see his team to gain confidence - giving Kuol another potential opportunity to impress.

Naismith said: "I've seen players with ability, who have lacked a bit of confidence and played safe. The first thing I've said to the boys is, 'you've coasted, which has cost you your gap in points, and you need to get back to enjoying the game'.

"It's hard to describe, but doing the things you don't actually think about doing, you just do. Not receiving the ball and being uptight and nervous. Get that out your head because that only causes problems. That's been the message from the start."