Michael Weir: Martin Boyle is underrated as Hibs striker and could cause this Celtic defence problems

Michael Weir reckons Martin Boyle could be used in attack against Celtic. (Photo by Mark Scates / SNS Group)

He is very underrated through the middle and he has got that electric pace that no defenders like playing against. With Christian Doidge suspended, Jack Ross saw it as an ideal opportunity to test it out again, and a change has maybe done Boyle the world of good too.

In terms of what works for the team I think Boyle is the type of player who can play up there. He has proven it in the past when he has posed problems for teams. It is part of the team that Jack can certainly look at and I would seriously consider it against Celtic on Saturday because I think the pace of Boyle would be difficult for them to play against.

It's certainly an option, it's just whether the manager will go for that because if you play Boyle through the middle, you're then losing something out in the wide areas. It's a good problem for the manager, and something to look at, which would potentially mean dropping one of the other strikers, but to be fair, I think the partnership of Doidge and Kevin Nisbet has been good. I don't think they've let themselves down.

People have to remember that the young lad Nisbet has come from the Championship and is being asked to be a focal point and a player that Hibs look for to score goals week in, week out. I've never seen it that way. I've always thought he would need time to bed in, and I think he's done great, but there will be dips in form with these players simply because of the expectation.

No disrespect to Dunfermline but the expectation levels at Hibs are much higher and he's jumped up a division as well, which is never easy to do, but he's handled that well. Nisbet alongside Doidge has definitely worked but you need a couple of partnerships in the striking department and a different way of playing. Doidge and Nisbet have never done us any harm, I just feel at times it's good to be able to change it.

Whoever plays up front against Celtic we should always approach it as we should any home game. Don't give them too much respect and have a go. I don't see the point in playing negatively in these games because you’ll only end up with one result.

Celtic are still finding their way this season and they are still struggling with injuries so it's maybe not a bad time to get them. It could be an ideal game to get a good result against the champions, but Hibs have got to turn up and play, which we haven't done in the big games so far.

If there's ever a game that can boost your confidence it's a game like this. It's up to us to take the impetus and try to win the game. Field a side that we think can cause them problems and have a go.

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