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Hibs manager Neil Lennon has refused to comment on whether Anthony Stokes has a future at Easter Road.
It is reported that the Leith side are looking to offload the controversial striker during the January transfer window, with an unnamed Polish club and English League One side Charlton thought to be interested.
The former Republic of Ireland internationalist again fell foul of Lennon during last week’s winter training camp in Portugal after breaking a curfew along with team-mates Danny Swanson and Martin Boyle.
Lennon takes his side across the city to face rivals Hearts in tomorrow’s Scottish Cup fourth round but was unwilling to discuss Stokes.
Asked if the 2016 Scottish Cup hero, who is in his third spell at Hibs and has 16 months to run on his contract, would be included in the squad for Sunday, Lennon simply said: “He might be.”
Lennon, however, was more forthcoming when admitting how his starting eleven would be determined by the state of the boggy Tynecastle surface.
On loan Manchester City winger Brandon Barker is fit was suffering a knock in the controversial December 27 goal-less derby in Gorgie, while new striker Jamie Maclaren could also feature after joining on a temporary deal from German side SV Darmstadt 98 earlier this month.
Lennon, who confirmed that St Johnstone have enquired about winger Swanson, said: “It’s just difficult on the pitch, it’s so narrow and with the conditions of the last month or so it would be difficult to dribble with the ball.
“I don’t think the current weather is helping. We’ll have to assess the conditions when we get there and look at it, have a think about how we will approach the game.
“We did that the last time, we had a good look at the pitch and we’ll do that again on Sunday.
“We’ll probably have a couple of ideas but the personnel will more or less be the same anyway, barring one or two.”
Last month’s derby was overshadowed by the Oli Shaw goal that was never given, despite narrowly crossing the line.
It was a game full of commitment and short of quality and Lennon and Hearts counterpart Craig Levein were at odds after the game when the former claimed that his team had been ‘kicked off the park’.
When reminded that Levein responded by saying that his opposite number made a career out of ‘doing that’, former Celtic midfielder Lennon said: “I believe so, I made a lot of money out of that. Both tongues were planted firmly in cheeks so I don’t mind that at all.”
Lennon, meanwhile, admits his side will have to wary of the threat posed by new Hearts recruit Steven Naismith, and concedes Hibs would not have been able to put together a financial package to sign the player on loan from Norwich City.
Lennon added: “I’m surprised he’s come back, he’s only 31, but maybe he just wants to play regular football at this stage of his career.
“A good player, a very good player, has been for a long
“We are in a position where we can’t afford to do a deal like this.
“Hearts are in a position to do a deal like that, and that is maybe because they are back in the division for their third season now.
“We are building up, building up, but we can’t just throw everything at one player, we are not prepared to do that.”
