How Hibs can use 'lure' of European football to attract talent and retain star performers

The money would be helpful, the prestige definitely something to be cherished. Everyone connected with Hibs, from chairman of the board to casual armchair fan, will have reasons to crave a return to European football.

David Gray, for one, believes that the “lure” of spending Thursday nights under the lights in pursuit of Euro glory could prove invaluable – in terms of talent retention AND recruitment - to an ambitious club in a small but passionate market. Given everything we know about the Black Knight model and the importance of Europe to their player movement plans, it certainly couldn’t hurt.

For starters, Gray hopes that guaranteed UEFA competition until Christmas, a prize still very much within grasp, would allow him to reduce the number of non-committed out-of-contract players on his books to just a handful. And he’s certain the platform provided by continental competition would make Easter Road a more attractive destination for potential signings seeking their next big move.

Hibs travel to Pittodrie this weekend knowing that a win over Aberdeen would take them a long way towards their goal of claiming third spot in the Scottish Premiership. Should Celtic justify the faith of every bookie on planet football by beating the Dons in the Scottish Cup final next month, the team finishing third will be guaranteed a crack at the Europa League play-offs, with the promise of Europa Conference League group stage football providing a soft landing in the event of a stumble at that final hurdle.

Focused on getting the first part of that equation in place, Gray is happy to explain just why Europe – with all the excitement that brings for fans forced to brush up on their geography when planning occasionally complex away days – matters so much, the first-year head coach saying: “I think when you join the football club, if you've been here for years, or whenever you're trying to sign a new player, whenever you're trying to bring people to the football club, the lure and the opportunity to play in Europe is a genuine opportunity. And it's not something that every player gets the opportunity to do.

Lucrative Europa Conference League campaign would put strain on squad

“You could go down south and play and have a fantastic career at a really high level but never get the opportunity to play in Europe. Yet still have a fantastic career by the end of it.

“There is a genuine opportunity to do that here. And I think looking at the position we've put ourselves in now, that's a genuine opportunity.

“The lure of that when your trying to bring players in, that’s an additional factor, the fact that you get to go and play in Europe. Especially with the format as well, because you could get right into Europe and play all the way to Christmas. So it's definitely something different, it's definitely where the club wants to be operating as often as it can, given all the rewards that come with it.”

Plenty a Scottish team has found involvement in the Europa Conference League - worth over £2.5 million before a ball is kicked, ticket sold or point gained - a costly experience, in football terms, as the demands of regular midweek football put a strain on squads tending towards the lean side of functional. Hibs have provided Gray – who signed a dozen players in the summer and added one more in January – with backing, at least, to assemble the right tools for the job.

Yet he’s adamant that there should be no need for another huge turnover in the summer, saying: “I think you need a big squad to cope with Europe, but you don't then just recruit numbers. You need quality, you need that togetherness still.

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“It’s not as if, because you get to Europe, you just need to go and bring in lots of players. I think there is a really good core here already that we've looked at, it's getting better all the time, there's a lot of improving still to be done.

“Earlier in the season we were talking about 15 out of contract. Now we’re hoping to get that down to single figures – and maybe even a number on one hand by the end of the season. So we’re trying to keep the core together.

“Now clearly that can change between now and the end of the season, and we're always looking to try and make sure that the squad improves all the time. But definitely if you can present players with the opportunity to go and play in Europe, it can only be beneficial when you're trying to keep players - and also bring players to the club.”

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