Celtic have been warned by Peterborough chief Barry Fry that Ivan Toney is 'close' to joining another club.

The Hoops, as Herald and Times Sport exclusively revealed on July 28, is Toney's preferred destination - a point Fry has now confirmed. But with other bids on the table, including one from Brentford, Celtic have been told to act fast or risk losing their man.

He told Daily Mail: "Celtic are running out of time now. The lad is very close to signing for someone else in the next couple of days. Celtic would have been his preferred choice but they are nowhere near it.

"I heard from Ivan’s agent to say Celtic were coming back. That was Sunday evening after their first game but I haven’t heard anything."

Toney is a wanted man and Brentford - despite missing out on Premier League promotion in last night's Championship play-off final - are expected to up their offer for the attacker after failing with an initial £6million bid last week.

Celtic had been hoping to do a deal with an initial £4million offer which could rise to more than £6million, but that was booted out by Posh. Gavin Strachan, now first-team coach at Parkhead and former Peterborough assistant manager, is believed to be a big influence on Toney.