Strachan full of praise for loan star Stokes

The Celtic manager Gordon Strachan has paid tribute to the ambition of Falkirk's teenage striker Anthony Stokes before tonight's CIS Insurance Cup quarter-final tie against the Bairns at Parkhead.

The 18-year-old, who is on loan from Arsenal until January, is the talk of Scottish football after scoring his second hat-trick in a week at Dunfermline on Saturday. The Republic of Ireland Under-19 star has scored nine goals in his last four SPL games and the Hoops boss believes the youngster deserves the accolades he has received.

Strachan said: "I haven't been able to get to games to see him but our scouts have watched him and we played against him recently. He has been doing fantastically well and coming up here from Arsenal has been a great move for him. He has taken a chance and said: 'Yes, I will take the opportunity to go and play first-team football.'

"It's been great for him and it's been even better for Falkirk. It shows that if, as a kid, you are prepared to get out and about and not sit on your backside, then people will notice you. Then you can launch a career and that's what he has done."

* Dynamo Kiev have held talks with the former England manager Sven Goran Eriksson about taking charge of the struggling Ukrainian premier league side, according to reports. The reports claim that the Swede, who left the England job in July after their disappointing World Cup campaign, was in Kiev last week to meet Dynamo's president Ihor Surkis. Eriksson has been linked with several European clubs in the past few months, although he has denied holding any negotiations.