Hibs 'in dialogue with four or five players' as Lee Johnson speaks on Martin Boyle situation

Lee Johnson has revealed Hibs are in dialogue with ‘four or five’ players as he looks to add to his squad before the summer transfer window closes.

Martin Boyle has been heavily linked with leaving Al-Faisaly in Saudi Arabia to return to the Scottish Premiership while the Capital club could also look to bolster their defensive options after being linked with Uruguayan centre-back Joaquín Sosa.

Speaking to the media ahead of Sunday’s Edinburgh derby meeting with Hearts at Easter Road, Johnson said that while there had been dialogue with the Australian internationalist, it didn’t ‘necessarily equate into a signing’.

Conceding that the situation was complex, Johnson said: "Certainly, there's open dialogue between the clubs from what I hear, but that doesn't necessarily equate to a signing.

"We've got dialogue with four or five players at the moment in various positions because we're still active in the market.

"Of course we'd love to bring Martin here. It won't be cheap, it would take a big investment from the ownership to be able to do that.”

The saga has taken another twist with Al-Faisaly bringing in another forward – Brazilian striker Cassiano Moreira, from Portuguese side Vizela – who could be viewed as a like-for-like replacement for Boyle, with the 29-year-old having played mostly as a centre-forward or supporting striker for the Burgundy last season.

Whatever the Saudi Pro League side decide to do, Johnson is keen to add another option in the final third – particularly since Aiden McGeady was ruled out for up to 12 weeks after suffering a recurrence of the medial ligament problem that curtailed his gametime during his final season with Sunderland last year.

Hibs have had dialogue with Martin Boyle, with Lee Johnson keen to add to his attacking third options

“We’ve identified three or four in the position, and I think we need an addition in that position, there's no doubting that,” the Hibs boss continued.

"What the club has done is put ourselves in a position where, if Martin ever becomes available, we are at the front of the queue.

"But Al-Faisaly have got to want to move him on and at the moment, we just don't know the full facts on that."