CRAIG LEVEIN, the Hearts manager, has acknowledged that Kyle Lafferty’s head has been turned by advances from Rangers but remains adamant that the towering striker will be going nowhere until the Ibrox outfit get real with their valuation.

The Tynecastle club turned down an initial £200,000 bid from Ibrox for the Northern Ireland internationalist, who scored 19 goals last term, and Levein’s contempt for the opening gambit was evident.

And the former Scotland manager has predicted a repeat of Rangers’ pursuit of Jamie Walker, in which the Glasgow giants saw three bids for the playmaker knocked back last summer – the highest being around £650,000 – before he ultimately joined Wigan in January.

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As with that transfer, Levein is more than happy to hold on to Lafferty, who entered the fray as a second-half substitute in yesterday’s 5-0 demolition of Inverness, unless a suitable fee is received.

“Players are always for sale but not at that price. It is not what we are looking for and we just get on with things,” said Levein. “We said, 'No, thank you’, and I'm not going to use any adjectives to describe the offer apart from ‘disappointing'.

“We’ve spoken to Kyle and his head has been turned a little bit but, to his credit, he has been very professional.

“As much as Kyle says it's not having an effect, I think it probably has. I had a long chat with Kyle on Saturday and Sunday about his responsibilities as a professional and he tried like a bear when he came on and he was focused.

“The good thing is we only have another month of this nonsense. We had the same dealings with Rangers over Jamie Walker and it was a bit 'meh'. I kind of expect the same thing again.”

Asked whether Lafferty wants to return to Rangers, his boyhood heroes where he claimed six major honours between 2008 and 2012, Levein added: “I didn't actually ask him that. As far as I'm concerned, him and I are fine and I don't have any issues at all.”

As it happened, it was a case of "Kyle who?" as Hearts ran riot at Tynecastle with minimal input from the Northern Irishman, teeing up a clash with Dunfermline in the last-16 of the Betfred Cup and sending Inverness Caledonian Thistle crashing out.

The irrepressible Uche Ikpeazu broke the deadlock on the half-hour mark, directing a super volley beyond Mark Ridgers after meeting an Olly Lee corner-kick.

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Little more than 60 seconds later, Ben Garuccio notched his first goal for the club since arriving from Adelaide when he curled home a sensational free-kick from 25 yards. A devastating four-minute blitz was completed courtesy of an Ikpeazu header.

The Tynecastle side made it four after the break when Steven Naismith headed home a pin-point cross from teenage wing-back Callumn Morrison, who was excellent throughout.

Lafferty almost found the net with his first touch after being sent on as a second-half substitute; however, last season's top scorer at Tynecastle hit the upright after being sent haring through on goal by Naismith.

Nevertheless, Hearts did finally add further gloss to a handsome triumph when Naismith nodded a Lee free-kick beyond Ridgers.

The result saw the Gorgie outfit overhaul Inverness Caley Thistle on goal difference at the summit of Group C – a feat made possible due to the SPFL’s decision to deduct Hearts two points, rather than all three, for fielding the ineligible Andy Irving in their win over Cove Rangers.

“We are out of this cup for one reason only – because of ourselves,” said Inverness boss John Robertson. “Our own inadequacies and poor defending cost us, not the SPFL.”