Hibs boss: Fletcher will stay loyal

Celtic failed with an approach for the 21-year-old while Cardiff are thought to have had a £3million bid rejected.Fletcher had declared it was time to move on from Hibs and claimed he would love to play for Celtic.But Paatelainen has no fears over the Scotland striker's motivation.The Finn said: "I can understand the player. I have been a player myself and players are ambitious; they want to experience European football, the Champions League and Celtic are a massive club."So I can't say I am totally flabbergasted, but Steven will remain totally committed to Hibs as he wants to develop as a player."Hibs have offloaded Dean Shiels, who was out of contract at the end of the season, after Doncaster offered a fee of around £50,000.But they resisted an attempt by Nottingham Forest to take skipper Rob Jones, having already turned down two six-figure bids from Colchester.And Paatelainen was delighted to keep two of his most important players following the sale of Scott Brown, Kevin Thomson and Steven Whittaker in recent years."I am not at the top of the hierarchy but I have my say, my opinion is always asked for," Paatelainen told the Evening News."Finances are important in football but it is important we have a squad and team that improves all the time."It is difficult to keep players if someone comes in and offers big, big money but we want to keep our best players."

Source: Team_Talk