James Wilson is beginning to re-establish himself at Hearts following a challenging period that saw him move away on loan and then return to a squad under new management. The young striker, who burst onto the scene as a 17-year-old during the 2024-25 campaign, has now scored again for the Edinburgh club and appears to be finding his place under head coach Frank Vrancken.
Wilson's rise was rapid. In his breakthrough season he made 32 first-team appearances and scored six goals, playing a key role in helping Hearts avoid relegation trouble. That form also earned him a call-up to the Scotland squad in March 2025, when he became the nation's youngest ever international.
His trajectory took a turn when Derek McInnes took charge of Hearts last summer. Wilson featured prominently during the League Cup group stage, but as the league campaign got underway and Hearts pushed for the title, opportunities became scarce. He started just one league match, a 3-3 draw with Motherwell, and made five substitute appearances before deadline day brought a surprise move.
Tottenham Hotspur, edging out rivals Arsenal in the race for his signature, took Wilson on loan. However, his time in London yielded limited first-team involvement — he was named among the substitutes twice but only played competitive football for Spurs' under-21 side. The north London club ultimately chose not to exercise an option to make the move permanent.
Despite the lack of senior minutes, Wilson insists the experience benefited his development. "I've seen a lot of people question it at the time, but for me, I got the experience of training with arguably a top-six club in England," he said. "There's some world-class players in that training group. Getting to train with the first team, using the facilities and getting the experience of being on the bench - the learning that I got made me a better player. So, hopefully I'm coming back here to show that."
Returning to Hearts, Wilson found himself out of the picture initially, left out of the matchday squad entirely during Vrancken's opening four games in charge, all of which ended in losses for the Jambos. Since then, though, he has featured in three consecutive matches and marked his return with a goal against Inverness, heading in a rebound from close range.
Vrancken praised the teenager's tactical intelligence after the win. "He did good," the manager said. "James is also one who is smart enough to know what we want. He is not as physical as some other strikers, but he can read the game and he can see what we want and try to do it also." The Belgian boss also highlighted a growing partnership between Wilson and teammate Claudio Braga, noting that the youngster's movement created more problems for opponents than his predecessor in the side, Amadou Ba-Sy.
For Wilson, scoring his first goal in over a year carried significant emotional weight. "It feels amazing. It's been so long since I've had that feeling. I loved it," he said, before explaining how simple instructions from his manager led to the goal. "The manager said to just kind of be me. Go run down everything, go and press everything. And I just kept myself in the middle of the box. To be fair, that was literally the goal I scored, wasn't it?"
The striker also spoke of the effort behind the scenes that has kept him ready for his chance. "I feel like I've worked so hard. I've done loads of stuff off the pitch, been in the gym, been doing everything I could to try and just be in the best place possible when I got called upon."
With his versatility and tactical awareness catching the eye of his new manager, Wilson now looks poised to build on this momentum as Hearts continue their season.
Based on reporting from BBC Sport Football.