Ismaila Soro: Celtic agree deal for Ivorian midfielder from Israeli club Bnei Yehuda
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'It's good to get a couple of players in' - Lennon
Celtic manager Neil Lennon has confirmed that a deal has been struck for midfielder Ismaila Soro.
The 21-year-old Ivorian will arrive from Israeli club Bnei Yehuda but will not sign in time for Saturday's Scottish Cup tie with Partick Thistle.
"We're just waiting on the paperwork being done," said Lennon. "Hopefully that can be resolved over the next few days.
"He's strong, technically very good, quick across the ground and hungry."
Soro will be Lennon's second signing of the month, following the arrival of Polish striker Patryk Klimala from Jagiellonia Bialystok.
"We've done a lot of work on him and did a lot of work on Klimala and we got him in the building," added Lennon. "So it's good to get a couple of players in to freshen things up a little bit."
Griffiths still part of the plan
With the arrival of Klimala, speculation has grown around the future of Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths, who has three goals in 18 appearances this term.
However, Lennon suggested that the Scotland international will be remaining at the club this month.
"At the minute we have Odsonne [Edouard] and obviously Griffiths, and he is looking good," said Lennon. "He's had a good Dubai trip and he's trained well again this week.
"I can't comment on speculation surrounding any player, really. There has been a lot over the last few months regarding Griffiths, but he's hungry and he wants to play and he's made that pretty clear to me."
Lennon confirmed that two or three players would be leaving on loan or permanently this month. However, the Celtic manager would not confirm whether back-up striker Vakoun Bayo would be among the departures.
Leigh Griffiths and Vakoun Bayo are aiming to force their way into Neil Lennon's plans
"I can't comment on individual players," said Lennon, when asked about the Ivorian forward. "But he's had a few injuries so he's just coming back from a long-term injury. He's back in training now so I've no inclination of that whatsoever.
"We're hoping to get a couple of deals done this week. Players will either go on loan or permanently. I haven't got any updates for you on that aspect, but there's maybe two or three players that will leave."