Hearts have finally offloaded misfit midfielder Malaury Martin.

The Frenchman was signed by former boss Ian Cathro on a three-and-a-half-year deal from Norwegian club Lillestrom in January 2017.

But he soon dropped out of the Tynecastle picture when Cathro was sacked and replaced by Craig Levein the following season.

The 30-year-old now leaves the Gorgie outfit by "mutual consent" having made just 21 appearances and scored two goals during his two-and-a-half-year stay in Edinburgh.

Speaking in March last year, Levein admitted the former Monaco and Middlesbrough player – who spent the first half of last season on loan at Dunfermline – was just not his cup of tea.

He told the Edinburgh Evening News: "We've got other midfield players that I feel can do a better job than him at this moment in time.

"The type of player he is, I want to play a different way. It was Ian's decision to sign him, to help him play the way he wanted to play, which I supported and which made sense.

"But I want to play with more dynamic players in midfield. Basically, he's the type of player Ian wanted his team to play with but he's not the type of player I want my team to play with. He just doesn't fit in with what I want to do."

Confirming his departure, a club spokesman said: "Malaury leaves Hearts with the club's best wishes."