Steven Naismith has challenged Alex Lowry to use his Hearts loan as a springboard to a full Scotland call-up.
Lowry made his temporary move from Rangers late on Friday and was handed an instant debut for the Jambos as a second-half substitute against St Johnstone less than 24 hours later.
The 20-year-old impressed hugely in his half-hour cameo at McDiarmid Park and helped inspire a 2-0 victory for the Gorgie outfit.
Given their own team’s lifeless 1-0 defeat to Kilmarnock later on Saturday, some Rangers supporters may question the decision to allow Lowry to leave Ibrox.
The attacking midfielder made seven first-team appearances for Rangers last season, including a Champions League run-out against Ajax and in the Old Firm triumph over Celtic, and is highly rated by the Light Blues.
And Naismith is certainly hopeful of big things from the Scotland under-21 cap, who he expects to hit the ground running at Tynecastle and catch the eye of Scotland manager Steve Clarke.
The Hearts technical director said: “Alex Lowry is one of the most comfortable [of the new signings] to come in because he’s been involved in Scottish football.
“His demands and the aspects he needs to work on are different.
“There’s a lot of pressure on him, being a young player coming through at Rangers, and having the ball for 90 per cent of games and what he’s required to do.
“But, also, every player in our team has to work really hard, and that’s something I’ve spoken to him about.
“He’s shown a willingness and keenness, not only to improve as a player, but he’s confident in his own ability and what he can do for Hearts and for himself, individually.
“For him, this season he’s got to push on and try to push to get into the national team.
“And also push to be involved in as many goals and exciting plays as possible.”
Lowry’s arrival was quickly followed by that of Costa Rican striker Kenneth Vargas on Monday evening.
The 21-year-old has joined on loan from Herediano in his homeland, with Hearts having the option of making the deal permanent next summer.
Naismith is convinced the Costa Rica under-23 cap, who was called into the full international squad as an injury replacement for the knockout stages of last month’s Concacaf Gold Cup finals, will excite the Jambos fans.
But he has called for patience with the youngster - and with Australian Calem Nieuwenhof following his arrival from Down Under on a four-year deal last month.
Naismith added: “Kenneth is somebody we watched and did a lot research on, and we had some good contacts who knew a bit about Kenneth.
“We found out where he was in his career, what he’s wanting to to get out of coming to us, and ultimately where he wants to go as a player.
“Then I had a few chats with him to see what he thinks his best attributes are and what he can improve on.
“He's an exciting player and somebody that will definitely get people excited.
“But, again, he’s somebody who will take time. We’ll hopefully get him the minutes that will help him adapt and get used to Scottish football.
“The same goes for Calem - he's another young player who will take time.
“The reason we signed him was because he was somebody in the Australian league and consistently one of the, if not the, best players around the league.
“He’s somebody over the coming years who will definitely contribute and improve us and make us better.”
Naismith, meanwhile, has opened the door for keeper Harry Stone and midfielder Connor Smith to follow Lewis Neilson in leaving the club on loan this month.
