Lee Johnson drops cryptic Hibs team hint as manager gives injury update on Mykola Kukharevych

Hibs manager Lee Johnson is keeping his cards close to his chest regarding one or two ‘niggles’ ahead of the cinch Premiership match against Dundee United on Saturday.

Previewing the visit of Liam Fox’s side, the Easter Road boss revealed two long-term absentees were back in training and looking good, with one confirmed to be returning to the matchday squad.

“There are a few niggles and knocks but I might need to keep them under my hat and be a bit creative with the team selection,” he said cryptically. “Lewis Miller is back in training and looked good physically; Jake Doyle-Hayes has now had ten days training and will go into the squad on Saturday – Forest Green is not happening.”

It remains to be seen if Chris Cadden will be fit for the match after limping out of last weekend’s victory at Motherwell after just half an hour, with Josh Campbell and Lewis Stevenson both filling in at right-back at Fir Park.

The Hibs squad are put through their paces at HTC ahead of the Dundee United clash

Meanwhile Mykola Kukharevych, who was in London for a scan on his medial ligament injury on Thursday, faces six to eight weeks on the sidelines. While the worst-case scenario could have seen the 21-year-old sidelined for up to three months, being without the on-loan ESTAC Troyes forward will limit Johnson’s options in attack at a time when every point could be priceless. It also means the Hibs boss will have to wait to unleash a Kukharevych-Nisbet pairing on the league.

“With Kevin chasing the minutes it’s a big loss not to be able to play them together,” Johnson admitted. “At the moment the focus with Nizzy has been concentrating on the football and making sure we give him every opportunity to be in the best shape and recover from the injury.”

Nisbet has 18 months left on his Easter Road contract and given Johnson’s comments about the club not offering Ryan Porteous new and improved terms in a timely fashion, he would surely be loathe to go through a similar scenario with the Scotland internationalist. The 25-year-old has scored five goals in five games since returning from a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a torn meniscus and anterior cruciate ligament injury in February, and while Hibs are keen not to push him and manage his return to regular gametime, Johnson suggested it was something of a balancing act at the moment.

“We’d love to keep Kevin, that’s no secret. He is a top player and has had his injury issues and the club has looked after him. Of course, those conversations I expect will go on in the not too distant future,” he said, when asked about the possibility of contract talks with the striker.

“Our ambition is to improve, keep our best players and build around them but also improve the best players. Kevin is still young and has missed nigh on a whole year of football. I had a good chat with him about not resting on his laurels because we love him, believe in him and think that he can go from strength to strength.

“There are still areas of the injury we make sure we protect, keep him fresh for games, confident and sharp as possible. He has a responsibility as an athlete to prepare himself correctly.”