Ross County manager Stuart Kettlewell is hopeful of tying forward Ross Stewart down on an extended contract.
Stewart finished as the Staggies’ joint leading goalscorer last season, netting 11 goals in the opening six months of the campaign prior to suffering a hamstring injury in December.
The 23-year-old, who joined from St Mirren in 2018, is entering the final year of his Victoria Park contract and Kettlewell is keen to prolong his stay at Dingwall amidst interest from other clubs.
Kettlewell said: “There is no secret to that situation, everyone is aware of it.
“Would we love to tie Ross Stewart down here for another couple of years? Of course we would.
“We are pretty proactive in this situation as well and well are versed on how it all works.
“I would love to be able to say Ross has signed an extension, but I can’t do that at this stage.
“What I do know is the boy comes in every single day focused on what he does.
“He doesn’t have a mindset of being somewhere else.”
Stewart has been linked with Premiership rivals Aberdeen and Hibernian, while English Championship clubs Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City have also been credited with an interest.
Kettlewell is confident Stewart will not be distracted by speculation, adding: “I have spoken to him specifically about his situation and the fact he is linked with several different clubs on a weekly basis.
“You ask him and he will tell you he loves playing football here, he enjoys the environment, the dressing room and the challenges of playing for Ross County.
“He has no intention of thinking elsewhere.
“If something does happen and it is right for the player and the football club then we will talk about it but otherwise he is a guy that comes in with a spring in his step every single day.
“That’s all I can ask for as a manager.”
County hope to welcome winger Michael Gardyne back to training on Thursday, after the club’s all-time leading goalscorer suffered an injury setback in training after recovering from a hamstring problem which had kept him out since December.
Kettlewell added: “He had a bit of a thigh strain and we hope to get him back in training on Thursday.
“He has missed a week of training but before that he was looking really, really sharp.
“The hamstring tendon was a bad injury and the type of player he is with the chopping and changing of direction it could become an even bigger issue.
“He came back in a really good condition. He lost a lot of weight and has been living his life perfectly away from the pitch and this thigh issue is a little bit of a frustration but we were always going to have slight teething issues with the time he has been out.
“I am confident when he returns he will go from strength to strength because he was looking really sharp up until last Tuesday.”
