BERKELEY, California - With the heartbreak of the final day of the Scottish season still raw, Socceroos midfielder Cameron Devlin says any decision he makes about his future at Hearts will have to wait until after the FIFA World Cup.
Devlin celebrated his 28th birthday in Socceroo camp on Sunday, a day on from making his first appearance for the national side in two years when he came on as a second-half substitute in Australia's 1-1 draw with Switzerland.
The diminutive midfielder had earned a place in Tony Popovic's 26-player squad for the World Cup off a strong season in which Hearts, where he was amongst the Jambos' best as they, ultimately unsuccessfully, staged an almighty push to break the Celtic/Rangers duopoly in the Scottish top-flight.
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First arriving at Tynecastle in 2021, Devlin's contract concluded following the 2025-26 campaign, and a report from the Edinburgh News has suggested that three MLS clubs are chasing his services. The club has already lost captain Lawrence Shankland to Rangers this offseason, heading to Ibrox on "undisclosed terms" before linking up with Scotland's World Cup squad.
"It's hard, because I know I've got a massive decision to make," said Devlin. "Being in the pre-camp, first and foremost, that was something I just wanted to put my head down, work as hard as I could to put my name in [Popovic's] mind.
"You don't really want any distractions; you just want to focus on this and do as well as I can for my country. I think this is the pinnacle for any sportsman.
"So to be focusing on someone else at the moment is probably not the right thing to do. Obviously, it's hard because it's my future, and I'm not sure what's happening at the moment. I've spoken to my coach at Hearts [Derek McInnes], me and him have such a great relationship, and we're speaking regularly at the moment.
"Hearts is such an amazing place. I feel so at home there, so it's something that I actually don't know at the moment, and as I said, I've got a World Cup to focus on, so that's my main priority."
Hearts sat atop the Scottish Premiership table heading into the final day of the season, needing only a draw away at Celtic to claim what would have been their first title since 1960.
A 3-1 defeat in Glasgow, however, dashed those hopes, with the fixture ending in ugly fashion after a pitch invasion saw the match ended before it officially finished and forced Hearts players and officials to hastily depart the venue - some still wearing their kits.
"It was horrible, to be honest," said Devlin. "I didn't envision the last game of the season going the way it did, in terms of the result, and the scenes you all would have seen. That's not what football is about.
"They won the game, and they were the champions. But just the way it all happened, the kind of last week with some of the decisions and stuff. It puts a bit of a sour taste on the ending to what was such a good season for such a special club.
"None of the players got hurt, but it wasn't nice, and it never is. But at the end of the day, we didn't quite get it over the line, which is something that will take a while [to process]."
For now, Devlin's focus is on Australia's opening World Cup fixture against Türkiye, which will take place in Vancouver on Saturday evening.
Part of a midfield mix that also includes Jackson Irvine (St Pauli), Aiden O'Neill (New York City FC), and Paul Okon Jr (Sydney FC), he's previously told ESPN that he's happy to play any role required but, after getting his first minutes for Popovic, and having not played with the 2022 squad, he's eager to press his case.
"To get some minutes, it was amazing, and I've had that taste again," he said. "I just want to play more, and hopefully I can do that.
One other midfield option, however, could be under something of a cloud, with defensive utility Kai Trewin seen getting into a car with medicos at the team's base camp before being driven away. Football Australia was approached for comment.