Hibs could fund summer rebuild with seven-figure sale of star player
Hibs are open to the idea of selling a major asset – for the right price - in a bid to off-set the financial hit of failing to make the top six AND fund a summer rebuild, with Elie Youan top of the list following concrete interest from France. And even the £6 million investment by billionaire Bournemouth owner Bill Foley isn’t expected to completely offset budgetary restraints imposed as a result of finishing on the wrong side of the Scottish Premiership split line.
Youan, who has been attracting attention from clubs in his native France, is a prime candidate for a summer sale, with a reported fee in the region of £2 million considered close to a fair price for the winger/forward. The attacker was a £700,000 signing from Swiss side St Galen last summer.
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Hide AdThe former France Under-20 player finished his first season in Scottish football with nine goals and 11 assists in all competitions - but had to fight for a place in the starting XI following the January arrival of former French youth team-mate Myziane Maolida and the return to fitness of Socceroos start Martin Boyle. An ankle injury sustained in training ruled him out of the post-split run-in, with his most recent appearance coming in the 1-1 draw at Motherwell that condemned Hibs to a place in the bottom half of the table.
Missing out on the top six, which would have delivered a home Edinburgh derby and a visit from Rangers, has definitely impacted financially on Hibs, despite Foley’s Black Knight group taking up a 25 per cent stake in the club. With much of the £6 million buy-in fee earmarked for improvements at Easter Road and the training centre at East Mains, the cash being ploughed into the transfer budget was always going to be much less than the headline figure. And some of that will be used to plug the hole caused by failure to make the top six, although reaching the Viaplay Cup semi-finals and a Scottish Cup quarter-final helped.
Hibs face a major summer rebuild during the close season, starting with the appointment of a head coach once new sporting director Malky Mackay has completed his search, with interim boss David Gray among the leading contenders on a short list being drawn up. Despite finishing up the campaign with a group of 44 players on the books, they’re still short of bodies in key departments – especially at goalkeeper and in the centre of defence.