David Gray excited for 'great atmosphere' as Hibs prepare for Dundee United at Easter Road in weekend showdown
The Hibs boss is ready to ‘reset’ following the International break
As nine Hibees return from International duty it’s normal service resumed in Leith, as David Gray prepares his side for the ‘tough task’ of Dundee United at home.
The match, which is scheduled for the slightly later kick off time of 17:45 on Saturday, promises to be an enthralling encounter as many parallels can be drawn between the two sides this season. Like Gray, Jim Goodwin also had to juggle European Qualifiers with domestic football as The Tangerines were eliminated in equally excruciating fashion as Hibs, losing on penalties to Rapid Vienna.
Both sides will be vying for Europe again this season and have had equally impressive starts. Dundee United’s only defeat thus far came in the last minute to Hearts. Meanwhile, Hibs still remain unbeaten in the league, but after drawing their last two, Gray will be striving to get back to winning ways.
Gray anticipates ‘great atmosphere’ at Easter Road
The sides last faced in May when the Hibees emerged 3-1 victors, but Gray is expecting a close match on Saturday. Speaking ahead of the weekend clash, the Hibs boss is looking forward to going back to Easter Road after the break. He said: “we know it will be a really tough task, Jim (Goodwin) has put together a very strong and physical side, along with retaining a lot of players from last season, so it has all the ingredients to be a great game.
“Every time we played Dundee United last season, they are always extremely tight games and they never traditionally followed the form. We need to match their fitness and physicality and the quality they have from wide areas – so we need to be ready for that.
“Our focus is on knowing that we are in a really good place, we’ve got a good squad, we’re at home and these are the games you want to be playing in. We’re close to another sell out I believe, and I know it will be a great atmosphere for everyone inside Easter Road – it’s one we are all really looking forward to.”
Hibs boss happy with Hibees stars on International stage
“For us, selfishly we want to make sure that everyone returns fit and healthy. It was good for some of the lads to get more minutes – the likes of Thibault Klidjé who had two good, solid performances and Grant Hanley who did very well with Scotland.
“We’ve got players who have travelled all over the world, travelling long hours through different time zones, playing varying amounts of minutes and arriving back at different times – so as coaches, we need to piece all that together to make sure we are fit and fresh for the game on Saturday.
“The players who have been here have trained very well. The Club is in a very good place at the moment, we don’t have any distractions now in terms of European football. We know if we want to experience nights like that again, then we need to perform domestically, and that starts in the league tomorrow against Dundee United.”