Robbie Neilson breathed a sigh of relief after revealing Hearts duo Cammy Devlin and Nathaniel Atkinson have not been called up for Socceroo duty.
The Aussie pair were both included in Graham Arnold’s long list for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Vietnam and Oman - which would have ruled them out of fixtures against Celtic, Motherwell and the Edinburgh derby - but have missed the cut.
Hoops star Tom Rogic and Hibs ace Martin Boyle are both expected to be included in Arnold’s squad ruling them out of the Old Firm and capital derbies.
But Hearts appear to be heading into the international window at full strength.
And Neilson said: "Nathaniel and Cammy were both on the long list but haven't made the short list. Which is good news for us. Not great for them but good for us.”
Meanwhile Neilson confirmed Armand Gnanduillet is close to a Tynecastle exit after a year with the towering French striker understood to be in talks with Le Mans in his homeland.
He said: "Armand is speaking to another club with our permission so we are just waiting on something back to see whether the deal happens or not.
“If it does, he goes with our best wishes. If not, he will come back into the squad.
"We are already looking in that position because it's an area we need to strengthen.”
