Lennon link key to Stokes’ two-year deal
Striker anthony stokes has revealed that the attraction of playing under Neil Lennon again is why he has signed a two-year deal with Hibernian.
The 29-year-old flew in to Edinburgh yesterday lunchtime to complete talks, and Hibs officially announced last night that he had joined the club for a third time in his career.
Stokes played for Lennon at Celtic for four years and admitted the Hibs head coach can get the best out of him.
“He was a big part of it,” Stokes said. “He knows me well and got the best out of me when I was at Celtic so I’m hoping he can do the same this time around.”
The Republic of Ireland international was released by Blackburn Rovers last month after an ill-fated spell with the Lancashire club. He has not played competitively since 14 April, but said that his fitness is fine and that he can’t wait to get back into firstteam action.
“I haven’t played in a while so I just need to get back at it and get as fit as I can as quickly as possible,” Stokes told STV.
“I’ve been doing my own thing. Maybe I’m missing a bit of sharpness but my fitness is fine. It’s just match sharpness and getting a touch of the ball again.”
Stokes’ return will be
welcomed by the Hibs faithful. His last act in a Hibs shirt was to score two goals as they defeated Rangers in the 2016 Scottish Cup final and will add experience and proven goalscoring prowess at Premiership level.
“I am delighted to be coming back to Hibernian,” said Stokes. “The club has a big place in my heart and it’s where I’ve played some of my best football. It’s an environment that can get the best out of me and I am looking forward to getting back amongst the squad and scoring goals again.
“The scenes of celebration following the cup win will live long in my memory, and the only disappointment from my last spell was that we didn’t get promotion.”
He added: “The boys did brilliantly last season and now I’ll be looking to help us push on back in the Premiership.”
The former Sunderland, Falkirk and Celtic player is joining Hibs for a third time in his career. His first 12-month stay came after he made a £500,000 switch from Sunderland in August 2009 and saw him net 24 goals in just under 50 appearances.
That prolific strike rate won him a £1 million move to Parkhead but after five-and-a-half years in Glasgow he returned to Edinburgh in January last year, helping Hibs end their 114-year wait to lift the Scottish Cup.
However, the 29-year-old turned down the chance to stay on at Easter Road as he took up the deal on offer at Ewood Park last summer.
But his career nosedived following his move to Blackburn Rovers and Stokes was released after registering just four starts for the Championship side, boss Tony Mowbray raising concerns about the strikers’ “personal issues”.
However, Lennon believes he can help Stokes rediscover his best form.
“Anthony’s a quality player that we all know well, and will be a massive addition to our strikeforce,” said the Hibs boss, who won’t be doing any further business during this transfer window.
“I’ve been really pleased with the work we’ve done over the summer – the squad is in good shape and we’ve made several strong additions.”