GREG Taylor will sign for Celtic over the next few days in a deal which is set to earn Kilmarnock close to £3million.

The 21-year-old left-back was left out of the Kilmarnock side yesterday for the game with Aberdeen, manager Angelo Alessio claimed a hamstring problem was behind his absence, but the defender has played his last game for the Ayrshire club bar any unforeseen problem.

Neil Lennon admitted he wanted perhaps as many as three players in before next Monday’s European transfer deadline and Taylor, who he has admitted for some time, fills the criteria of what the Celtic manager wants in a signing.

Asked what he wanted in any potential Celtic player, Lennon said: “I look for pace and stamina. Enthusiasm. A piece of quality helps as well. There will be times, obviously, when you don’t know about their personalities, So, you have to be aware of that and work with it as you go along.

“The main ingredients are not hiding. If you make a mistake the be ready to go again. Bravery is important to play here as well.

“We need to see presence, quality, personality on the pitch. We’ve had some good ones here and they are not all down to me, obviously. We are hoping the ones that have come in can settle and can be a success here.”

Alessio insisted that there had been no official bid made up to Saturday night.

He said: "At the moment it’s only rumours. I don’t think the club has received any offers from Celtic.We have spoken to the club and the owner and we want to keep our best players."