Hibs boss David Gray talks Vente confidence, Molotnikov contribution & Cadden injury after Elgin win

Hibs were 5-0 winners over Elgin City in their opening Scottish League Cup group stage match (Pic: SNS) | SNS Group

Hibs ran out comfortable winners in their opening Scottish League Cup group stage match with a 5-0 win away to Elgin City of League Two.

Dylan Vente bagged himself a hat trick while defender Marvin Ekpiteta scored on debut and Martin Boyle got in on the action as David Gray’s first official match as permanent Hibs boss ended in satisfying fashion. Speaking after the game, the Hibees boss said: “It was a very professional performance. It’s a really tricky place to come and all the pressure was on us, but it was a really professional performance and to score five goals and keep a clean sheet is very pleasing.

“It’s a testament to the players. They knew what to expect coming into the game but it’s all about attitude and professionalism. I thought we handled the pressure well. We started quite well, scored the goal, but were a wee bit sloppy after that, and credit to Elgin for coming back into it a bit and causing us a few problems. But once we started to play forward more and gain a bit of control I thought we were well worthy of the win in the end. The subs coming on maintained that intensity as well, which is hugely important."

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On hat-trick hero Vente, the Hibs gaffer added: “I’m pleased for Dylan - strikers love scoring goals and there’s no better feeling than getting a hat-trick, and to do that on day one should give him all the confidence in the world to move forward and hopefully we can keep getting the best out of him."

“We’ve done a lot of work with him already; I think his quality is there for everyone to see, and we certainly saw it today. I don’t want to talk about last season and what we’re doing differently, it’s about us moving forward. I’m delighted he’s managed to start the season with a goal, it should give him that confidence and it’s up to us to keep getting the best out of him.”

The match also saw 18-year old Rudi Molotnikov get just his second start for the club. In a lively performance he contributed a super assist for Ekpiteta’s goal.

“Rudi has really stepped up in pre-season,” said Gray. “His attitude, his ability to affect games of football. Last season, he trained with us quite a bit and to give him the opportunity today, I think he took it. He did really well. To be honest, it was a collective, everyone did really well today and it would be wrong to single anyone out. The performance, the fitness levels, and the attitude was really good."

Elie Youan was noticeably absent from the squad for the match while there was concern for Chris Cadden after he was forced off in the first half. Gray provided an update on both, saying: “He (Youan) came in yesterday feeling poorly. So it was just the fact he'd be sitting on a bus, and with the way he's feeling at the moment, we didn't want to put the rest of the squad at risk knowing what it was. He's got an illness but hopefully, it's just a minor thing, 24 hours or however long these things can take. He spoke to the doctor this morning and we'll monitor that situation and see how he's feeling. Hopefully, he's feeling better as soon as he can."

On Cadden, Gray added: "It's always a concern when players come off. The positive side is that it's an experienced player that's put his hand up, he knows his body. He felt tightness in his thigh, hopefully he's felt it earlier enough and not pushed it too far, which would be great rather than playing through and making it worse. Hopefully, we've managed to get that off as quickly as we can. But until we investigate it further we'll have no idea exactly what it is. It's tightness in his thigh and we'll have to monitor the situation."