Stephen signs up

The 24-year-old joins the Jambos, subject to international clearance, from the English Championship side until the end of the season.
 
A tall centre-forward, Stephen began his professional career at Fulham, where he made his senior debut in December 2016, before spending the second half of that season on loan at Shrewsbury Town, where he helped the Shrews avoid relegation from League One.
 
The following season he spent six months on loan at Rochdale and then played the following campaign on loan at Scunthorpe United.
 
He would permanently to Southend United in season 2019/20, where he scored 11 goals in 35 appearances.
 
A season later he was back at Rochdale, this time on a permanent deal and his 11 goals earned him a move to Wigan Athletic last summer. It was at the Latics where he got his hands on silverware, helping them to the League One title.
 
He’ll now pull on the maroon jersey until the end of this campaign, and manager Robbie Neilson told the Official Hearts Website: “It’s no secret that we’ve been looking at strengthening our forward area after Liam Boyce’s injury, and I’m delighted that we’ve managed to do so by bringing Stephen in.
 
“He’ll bring a big presence up top and a lot of experience despite only being 24-years-old.
 
“His goals earned him a move to Wigan and we’re confident that he can continue to find the back of the net up here as we gear up for a busy period of domestic and European football.”
 
Sporting Director Joe Savage said: “We’ve been aware of Stephen for a while thanks to the sterling job our recruitment team do in identifying talent.
 
“Because of this, we were able to move quickly to bring him in and we’re very happy to be able to call Stephen a Hearts player.
 
“I’d like to thank Stephen’s agent and Wigan Athletic for helping to facilitate the deal, and, once again, our board for their backing during this crucial time.”