Hibs boss adamant he won't underestimate Andorrans after arduous spying mission

Hibs manager Lee Johnson has vowed not to underestimate European opponents Inter Club d’Escaldes, after undertaking a spying mission to get a beat on the Andorrans last week.

The Easter Road boss flew out to the Faroes to take in the second leg of Inter’s Europa Conference League first qualifying round tie with Víkingur Gøta, before a lengthy trip back to the Capital to take to the touchline for Hibs’ Friday-night friendly with Groningen.

"It was tiring on Friday. It was a five o’clock start, on to Copenhagen, and then Copenhagen to Edinburgh. But it was worth it, absolutely worth it, it blew me away,” he said, reflecting on his trip to the North Atlantic.

“It’s not a given, this game. Inter are strong, physically strong, very competitive, they’re together, they’re well coached, they’re direct. They’re used to having the ball, but I think we’ll end up having the ball. They’re very compact and difficult to break down, so, it’ll be an interesting game.“I’ve played teams with their quality before, absolutely. We need to score the first goal. The first goal is important to bring them out and then potentially we can score again, but they waste time well, with the greatest respect – or game-management should I say. It’ll be a good game, I’m looking forward to it.”

Lee Johnson won't underestimate Inter Club d'Escaldes having seen them in action in the Faroes against Víkingur Gøta. Picture: Mark Scates / SNS Group

Hibs will fly out to the Pyrenean microstate on Wednesday before flying back straight after the first leg on Thursday afternoon, with a friendly down at Blackpool coming on Saturday ahead of the return leg in Edinburgh on Thursday August 3. Hibs have played Andorran opposition in Europe before – beating Santa Coloma 5-1 on aggregate during the 2021/22 Europa Conference League – but Johnson is ready to impart his knowledge on the squad ahead of a tricky game this week, some of whom have continental experience with other teams.

“I’ve just got to give the players as much information as possible so their mind’s eye has already seen the opposition, if you know what I mean,” he explained. “There is a risk of a player getting sent off and they’re the types of things where you’ve got to keep your calm and keep your cool, and you hope our intensity and our quality can win us the game.

“Any experience of Europe is good. Dylan [Levitt] obviously had a bad experience last year but they’re all good experiences. We’ve got internationalists in Jimmy Jeggo, who has been about; Lewis Miller has played for Australia at youth level in big tournaments all over the world. There’s David Marshall, and a Ghana international in Jojo Wollacott. So, there’s plenty of experience there and it’s about being professional and trying to get ourselves a lead to come back to Easter Road.”

There are three factors that Johnson believes Hibs will have to deal with in order to get a favourable result in Andorra la Vella.

“The pitch is small and tight; there’s the altitude; and then it’s dealing with the heat – they’re probably the main focus for me,” he added. “Those are the three things that we’ve got to get in our minds. Those three factors are going to be tough, but then it’s just a normal game of football and we’ve got to do our best to dominate.”