Will Hibs double firepower by pairing ex-Newcastle and Palace predator with all-action Swansea loanee?

Suggesting that this Hibs side lack a cutting edge is, to be blunt, akin to hinting that David Gray’s men are susceptible to losing the odd soft goal. Which makes them a well-balanced team, in some respects.

At least there are options open to rookie head coach Gray as he looks to boosting a scoring rate best described as on the weak side of anaemic. Up to and including letting rip with an old-fashioned strike pairing intended to overwhelm opposition defences.

Has the time come to let veteran goal scorer Dwight Gayle play up front alongside, rather than instead of, powerful target man Mykola Kuharevich? Gray certainly doesn’t dismiss the idea out of hand when it’s suggested as a potential solution to one pressing problem. Watch this space.

Although their figures over the first seven rounds of Scottish Premiership action may be skewed slightly by having faced both Celtic AND Rangers, there is no denying that Hibs – averaging just 0.9 goals per game – are struggling for oomph in the opposition final third. And despite Gray’s insistence that he’d be more worried if his team weren’t creating chances, the stats compiled on that front are almost as concerning.

According to football stats platform FotMob, Hibs are second bottom of the table when it comes to expected goals (xG), their overall score of just 7.8 only beating St Johnstone in a metric considered insightful and important by a majority of modern coaches. They’re second bottom in terms of what the stats guys classify as “big chances”, too, with just nine in seven games – one more than the Perth side.

Hibs striker Dwight Gayle, picture in action against Motherwell, could be in line for a first start after the international break. | SNS Group

Their standing in when it come shots on target is just as big of a contributing factor, Hibs sitting tenth in the table with an average of just over three cracks at goal per game. Only Hearts have a lower shot conversion rate, in the entire top division. Some consolation, at least.

Injuries to Kieron Bowie, Martin Boyle and, to only a slightly lesser extent, club captain Joe Newell have undoubtedly impacted on those numbers. The fact that Elie Youan isn’t back to match fitness, with the French winger left as an unused sub in Saturday’s 2-1 home loss to Motherwell, is also a factor.

The gaffer thought Kuharevich didn’t quite show enough conviction in the first of his scoring opportunities at the weekend, with the big man – who has scored twice since returning for a second loan spell at Easter Road – not really connecting with a header and allowing Aston Oxborough to make a brilliant double save. Gayle, still searching for match sharpness after six months without a competitive start, replaced the Ukrainian with about 20 minutes of the game remaining, including injury time.

What many Hibs fans are wondering, of course, is whether the power and strength of Kuharevich might complement the predatory instincts of former Newcastle and Crystal Palace penalty box finisher Gayle. It’s clearly something being considered by the gaffer.

“I'm sure at times we will do that, 100 per cent,” said Gray. “I don't see anyone that can't play with anyone; even Harry McKirdy coming on as well, Josh Campbell, Rudi Molotnikov, they can all play. The flexibility in that front line goes back to the strength and depth of the squad.

“I've never been fixed on a formation or having only one way of playing. We’ve spoken about that often enough.

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“At times you definitely have to have two at front; at times you may start the game that way. It all purely depends on what we think gives us the best opportunity to win the game. And even within games, you'll see that happening at times as well, if we’re chasing games or just to have that flexibility and different types of strikers I think also helps.”

Having shown an ability to score goals up to and including Premier League level, Gayle – even at 34 – should be reliable enough in the danger area. Even allowing for his missed header against Rangers at Ibrox.

Kuharevich also has obvious potential. Especially if Hibs can produce more telling crosses from both flanks.

Gray has confidence in both forwards, either as a pair or flying solo, saying: “I think obviously Dwight's very different to Myko in terms of stature. So obviously Myko’s a big, tall focal point, but Dwight just shows that guile and know-how in the box. He’s a fox in the box type striker so it's a good blend to have definitely.”