Celtic and Hibs close to agreeing a fee for Anthony Stokes

Celtic made their interest in the Republic of Ireland striker public last week, and while their initial bid of around 800,000 fell significantly short of Hibs' valuation, it is understood that the two clubs are close to agreeing a figure for the 22-year-old striker.

Neil Lennon's side returned to the top of the SPL yesterday after a 1-0 win at Motherwell, secured with a late penalty by Daryl Murphy, while Hibs stuttered to a 1-0 defeat at St Mirren.

Lennon spoke after the game of his desire to add at least another two new faces to his squad before the transfer window closes tomorrow evening, while his Hibs counterpart John Hughes criticised Stokes for a lacklustre display in Paisley.

If Stokes heads to Celtic, it will leave Hughes with a desperate last-minute search for a replacement. Derek Riordan and Colin Nish are the only two remaining forwards in his first-team squad as Kurtis Byrne is on loan at East Fife, scoring a hat-trick for the Second Division club on Saturday.

Hughes was putting a brave face on the prospect of losing Stokes to Celtic, insisting he hoped to see the Irishman stay with Hibs this season. But he was critical of his performance against St Mirren, who took all three points due to a second-half strike from Craig Dargo.

"I felt he was poor, but I can understand it with everything on his mind; sometimes you play on emotions and if it was to be his last game I thought he might go out with a bang, but it didn't materialise," said Hughes. "If he's here when the window shuts and I can add one or two, I'll be a happy guy - I'm still looking to bring two players in."