Lee Johnson enjoys Hibs' win against Clyde but says 'red flags' will be worked on in training

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
Lee Johnson was satisfied after Hibs’ 5-0 victory over Clyde in the Premier Sports Cup group stages – but admitted there were some aspects of the performance needing additional work in training.

A Christian Doidge hat-trick in 13 minutes and first-half goals from Josh Campbell and Elias Melkersen had the hosts five goals up at the break and they coasted through the remainder of the 90 minutes.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Speaking afterwards, Johnson said: "I certainly enjoyed that! I thought it was a good game. We wanted to start with that relentless tempo and see the ball coming in quickly every time it went out, stuff like that, and keep trying to pepper the opposition backline as much as possible.

"The lads were good although our tempo ran out a little bit in the second half, and maybe we got a little bit bored of doing the right things.

"But at the same time, it's a 5-0 win against a sticky opponent in terms of being a tough team to play against, with some really good finishes and we were very clinical in the first half.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"We won't always get the amount of chances we had so that ability to be clinical is really good.”

Even if Hibs took their foot off the gas in the second 45, the first-half performance had Johnson purring with delight – but he challenged his players to improve when they go again against Falkirk on Tuesday night.

"All the boys were excellent, and really tried to do the right thing,’ he added.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad
Lee Johnson takes his place in the Hibs dugout ahead of the Premier Sports Cup group match against ClydeLee Johnson takes his place in the Hibs dugout ahead of the Premier Sports Cup group match against Clyde
Lee Johnson takes his place in the Hibs dugout ahead of the Premier Sports Cup group match against Clyde

"It didn't always come off; it wasn't a perfect performance by any stretch of the imagination, and there were a lot of red flags that I'll have to go back and coach with my staff.

"But we ticked a box in terms of winning the game, we scored five goals, and I think fans will see our intention in terms of how we wanted to play."

Johnson also had words of praise for Doidge, who was linked with an Easter Road exit earlier this summer.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"He was brilliant; we're not looking for our players not to do well, we want our players to do really well and you can't argue with how he's performed.

"He's been great personality-wise, and been fantastic in training."

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.