Hearts 'relaxed' over Rogers Mato situation as $1m transfer claim addressed by Sporting Kansas City

The Tynecastle club announced on Tuesday that they had signed “one of Europe’s hottest properties” on a pre-contract agreement with the 22-year-old Ugandan winger set to arrive in the summer upon the expiry of his deal with the North Macedonian outfit.

However, less than 24 hours later, FK Vardar dropped a bombshell by publishing a statement on their website saying they had accepted a $1m offer from MLS side Sporting Kansas City for Mato.

Bizarrely, the post also included screenshots of emails detailing the fee and negotations while stating that Mato will earn $40,000 per month in the US, which roughly equates to £30,000.

Hearts submitted a £300,000 offer for the immediate transfer of Mato last week, which Vardar rejected. They then agreed terms on a three-year deal with the forward on a contract effective from July.

“We have a signed agreement with the player and are relaxed about the situation,” said a Hearts spokesperson.

Sporting Kansas City have also distanced themselves from FK Vardar’s claims, with a spokesman telling the Edinburgh Evening News: “Sporting Kansas City explored a transfer for Rogers Mato but he has elected to sign a pre-contract with Hearts and we wish him all the best in the future.”

Vardar, who are understood to have mounting debts, are said to be angry that Mato is leaving without them securing a sizeable transfer fee.

“FC Vardar AD decided to accept the million-dollar offer from the Sporting Kansas City team from Kansas, USA,” said Vardar on their official website. “A club that competes in the strongest MLS football league in the USA. Mato will play against Messi, Suarez, Giroud, Lloris, Busquets… Now it remains for Kansas and Mato to agree on the conditions under which he will play there. A salary of around 40,000 dollars per month, plus bonuses, is expected. This transfer will also help Strumica Brera, which according to the agreement is entitled to 20% of the sale.”