Exclusive:Hibs scoring ace talks 'physical' tackling, 'dream' start to Easter Road career - and World Cup hopes
‘Here, you can kick someone hard and it’s not a foul - but it suits me,’ says Croatian-Australian forward
New Hibs goal threat Ante Suto insists he’s robust enough to cope with the no-holds-barred combat of Scottish football, despite suffering an initial shock over what constitutes a free-kick offence in the SPFL. And the Croatian-born forward has revealed how he qualifies for Australia – and why a small army of cousins back in Melbourne will be hoping to see him turn out for the Socceroos in this summer’s World Cup.
The Deadline Day signing is yet to start for Hibs. But he’s already scored two important goals for David Gray’s team, coming off the bench to bag an injury-time winner against Dundee United at Easter Road – and then netting the vital second, again as a substitute, in Saturday’s 2-0 home win over St Mirren.
Two goals in three substitute appearances for Suto
Suto, who definitely got stuck in on his Edinburgh derby debut as a second-half replacement at Tynecastle, has drawn on advice from gaffer Gray in going “from zero to 100” in adapting to the new environment. And the 25-year-old, who has looked anything but timid in his outings so far, admits he’s been taken aback by the physical nature of the game in Scotland’s top flight.
“It's very tough,” he said. “It's much more physical than in Croatia. I’ve already learned that some of the fouls in Croatia, here it’s nothing.
“In Croatia, when you shout for a foul, it's a foul. Here, you can kick someone hard and it's not a foul. It's much more physical.
“But it suits me. I'm also physical, so it's tough, but I'm ready for it.
“My game is to go 100 per cent every time. If I'm not at 100 per cent, it's not the same play. That's my game. I'm always at 100 per cent.
“And everything is about results for me. That is why coming to play at a club like Hibs, where the games are so important, is a big thing to me.”
So far, Suto’s decision to join Hibs on a two-and-a-half-year deal seems to be paying off. The former Slaven Belupo attacker, capable of playing anywhere along the front three, has certainly made an impact as a substitute.
With a trip to Celtic Park looming on the horizon, he’s eager to maintain his scoring streak. But, of course, he’d rather do that as a member of Gray’s starting XI.
“My intention was, when I came here, to score goals, to assist goals, to help the team win every game,” he said, adding: “I'm just doing my job.
“Against St Mirren, yes, the goal was simple, but I did a good movement. It was a good movement, but the goal was not the best. But a goal is a goal. It's enough.
“The manager spoke to me when I came here. Before that, there was a conversation between me and the sporting director, Malky Mackay, about what to expect.
“But when I came here, the gaffer said to me: ‘Go easy, it's a new start. You went here from zero to 100.’ No pressure, just play my game. I'm playing my game and it started very well.
“Yes, I heard about this league. I heard about the big clubs. I knew the Hibs are one of them. I'm already playing for the big club.
“I know Celtics and Rangers, in terms of titles and all that, they are big clubs. We play every game to win. We're going to fight and hopefully get three points against Celtic next weekend.”
Dual nationality opens up Socceroos opportunity
Suto was born and raised in Croatia. But his father, Anthony, is a native of Melbourne.
It’s no surprise, then, that Socceroos boss Tony Popovic – a son of Croatian immigrants to Sydney himself – put Football Australia on alert when he heard about this Suto lad scoring goals for Slaven. Popovic, who was actually living in Croatia when he took on the Australia job following Graham Arnold’s resignation in 2024, has been keeping a close eye on the frontman.
Explaining how family links to Oz continue to be part of his daily life, Suto revealed: “My father is from Australia. He was born there and lived there for 20-something years.
“Then he came back to Croatia, met my mum and stayed there. He's from Melbourne. So yeah, Melbourne City, Melbourne Knights and all that.
“I have a lot of family also in Australia. My cousins and all that. I'm connected to them.
“We chat almost every day. We have a group on Facebook, on Messenger. We are in touch. We are a big family.”
The dream, obviously, is to play well enough – and make a big enough of an impact – to make himself impossible for Popovic to ignore. With a couple of friendlies against Cameroon and Curacao coming up at the end of the next month, the forward probably just as enough time to force his way into the squad heading to the USA this summer.
Yet Suto admitted: “For me, I didn't even think about it one year ago when I was in Croatia. When I started playing much more games, scoring goals, it brought attention to them also.
“I had some contacts with them. We'll see. I hope they'll call me up. We'll see from there.
“I spoke about it the first day here, talking with Martin Boyle and Jack Iredale. They told me everything. We'll see. In March is the international break.
“I'm hoping the call comes. But who knows? It's been amazing so far. I couldn't have dreamed of a better start.”