KYLE LAFFERTY has set his sights on Premiership football with Kilmarnock next season as he looks to settle down in Scotland in the coming years.
The Northern Irishman will look to save Tommy Wright's side from the drop during their final top flight fixtures with St Mirren and Hamilton this term.
Lafferty agreed a deal until the end of the season when he moved to Ayrshire in February and his impressive impact has seen him land the Player of the Month prize for April.
And the former Rangers and Hearts striker would be happy to sign on the dotted line once again after Killie have secured their Premiership status.
🏆 Congratulations to @KilmarnockFC's Kyle Lafferty who has been awarded the SPFL Premiership Player of the Month award for April! pic.twitter.com/5ULCV8k0VX
— SPFL (@spfl) May 5, 2021
Lafferty said: "I’ve known from a young age that if you are happy off the pitch you will perform on the pitch.
"But me being me I have always done daft stuff and concentrated on football second to other things.
"But I am happy here and outside football I am living in my own home, I don’t have to travel for hours for games or training.
"I came to Kilmarnock because it ticked a lot of boxes for me and knowing the manager and the faith and trust he put into me made me want to reward him with goals.
"I will try and stay in Scotland, that’s my aim. I’ve done enough travelling abroad and travelling and being away from my wife and kids.
"I will try to stay in Scotland and if that’s Kilmarnock then I will be absolutely delighted because I have loved every single day I’ve been here with the lads and the manager.
"I’m playing football with a smile on my face which is a nice bonus for me.
"I’m sure at the end of the season we will sit down and talk about what we want to do.
🗣 'The more pressure that's on me I tend to produce goals'
— PLZ Soccer (@PLZSoccer) May 5, 2021
April's Player of the Month Kyle Lafferty insists he thrives off of pressure of keeping Killie up
- With @ArnoldClark pic.twitter.com/hdxM7KKTu4
"I would obviously like to stay in the Premiership, but I have a great connection with the manager and I would like to play at Rugby Park with the fans in.
"I know it’s a nice place to come to play, so I am not going to say ‘no, if we get relegated.’ But I would prefer to stay in the Premiership."
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here