Livingston have made midfielder Craig Sibbald their first summer signing even though manager David Hopkin’s future remains in doubt.
The highly-rated playmaker has signed a two-year deal with the Premiership newcomers after leaving hometown club Falkirk under freedom of contract.
The 23-year-old made his debut for the Bairns as a 16-year-old in July 2011 and went on to 269 first team appearances for Falkirk.
Sibbald has made the switch as uncertainty surrounds whether the sought-after Hopkin will pledge his future to the Lions after guiding the West Lothian outfit to the top-flight via the play-offs.
Livingston assistant manager David Martindale, however, is thrilled to have recruited Sibbald.
He said: “We are absolutely delighted to have secured the services of Craig, and I genuinely think he will be a huge asset to Livingston.
“We have been tracking him for a number of years and I’m thrilled we have now enticed him to the Tony Macaroni Arena.
“He was always a player we tried to keep quiet when playing against Falkirk as we felt he had that natural ability to change games on his own.
“Technically Craig is a fantastic footballer and we really look forward to helping him develop his career at Livingston.
“You won’t find many 23 years-olds with over 200 Championship & up matches under their belt.
“We always felt he could play Premiership football, and it just shows the strides Livingston has made in that we can offer that to Craig as an incentive for a player of his undoubted quality.”
In confirming Sibbald’s arrival, the club also stated that they ‘hope to have more player news over the coming days and weeks’.
