Hibs can turn Youth League tie around in Edinburgh, insists Murray Aiken

Murray Aiken insists Hibs have what it takes to beat Molde in the return leg of their UEFA Youth League first-round tie, despite a narrow defeat in Norway on Wednesday night.

The wee Hibees held their own until Johan Bakke’s 67th-minute free kick opened the scoring and although Aiken and Robbie Hamilton had late chances to take something from the game the hosts held out for a slender lead going into the second half of the tie at Easter Road in October.

Both teams had a man sent off with Jacob MacIntyre dismissed for Hibs and Molde losing Leon-Robin Juberg-Hovland to successive bookings and Aiken felt the visitors might have made more of the spell in which they had a numerical advantage.

"It’s obviously frustrating to get defeated but we’re still in the tie at the end of the day,” he told HibsTV afterwards.

"The conditions were tough so we need to regroup and go again in the second leg.

"After they got the man sent off I felt we might have utilised the extra player a little better but the game was a bit all over the place.

"We needed to relax but for most of us, it was our first time playing in Europe and that will be good experience back at Easter Road. Hopefully we can get the job done there.”

Aiken skippered the side in Molde and although he appreciated the honour, insisted that wearing the armband was secondary to the match.

Murray Aiken insists Hibs can turn the tie around in Edinburgh

"It was a proud moment for me to captain the team on our Youth League debut but it’s not about that, it’s about getting the result and we weren’t able to do that unfortunately."

Aiken will now lead Hibs into the second leg in the Capital at the start of October and is fully focused on helping produce a performance that can overturn the aggregate deficit and secure a place in the second round.

"The boys are buzzing for the return game, to have that extra chance and for it not to be a one-leg knockout,” he added.

"We’re hugely frustrated in there but we’re still in the tie and we have to focus on that.

"It’s only 1-0 and back at Easter Road with some fans behind us we can hopefully get the result we want.”