SHANKS P****S ME OFF.. HE'S TOO GOOD!

CLAUDIO BRAGA believes being at close quarters with the quality of Lawrence Shankland is taking his game to another level

- BY GORDON PARKS

The Hearts striker has been blown away by the standards being set by his sidekick this season and admits he’s p***ed off his can't match them.

As the Jambos prepare to face Rangers on Sunday, the 26-year-old revealed he's being driven to distraction by his skipper on a daily basis and trying to become a better player.

He said: “Lawrence p***** me off, to be honest, because he's just too good. For example, I feel like I'm a more energetic guy and everything but he makes things look easy.

“It's like, how do you do that? He's just really that good when it comes to the ball at his feet. The ball does what he wants it to do so that impressed me.

“In the beginning, before I came here, I was kind of scared because during my first training, I looked at the first touch and quality of the guys and I was really impressed.

“I thought it was going to be tough for me but then as soon as you start playing with them and you start learning and taking some advice I knew I was going to do be able to do this and I need to push myself to do better.