Pundit can't put finger on what's missing at Hibs - but reckons 'monumental' fixture can change the narrative
Former Hibee has been left puzzled by their recent poor run of results
Pundit Michael Stewart can’t put his finger on what’s wrong with Hibs at the moment - but believes a League Cup semi-final at Hampden could relieve some of the pressure on manager David Gray.
Next up for the Hibees is a ‘monumental’ Premier Sports Cup clash away to third tier side Ross County on Saturday. Victory in Dingwall would see them qualify for the semi-finals at Hampden Park - a venue they haven’t visited since November 2023.
Despite the exciting opportunity for a day out to the National Stadium, the mood in Leith is fairly subdued at the moment. Back-to-back league defeats at home to Hearts and away to St Johnstone have overshadowed a promising start to the season, while the wounds of their agonising Conference League play-off defeat to Gent could take a while to heal.
Pundit can’t put finger on what’s ‘missing’ at Hibs
Former Hibs midfielder Stewart has maintained that, despite a few ups and down, Gray is taking Hibs on the right path. That being said, after watching their 2-1 defeat at McDiarmid Park on Sunday, speaking on Premier Sports’ Scottish Football Social Club podcast, he claims something still doesn’t feel right about recent performances.
He said: “A couple of seasons ago, there were so many aspects of the club (Hibs) that you were just looking at and going, ‘that's not right, this needs to change, that's terrible.’ So many of those parts of the club are now what you regard as actually moving in the right direction.
“Generally speaking, it's a good squad. They're making some good additions. The club as a whole is being run far better. But something is just... I don't know what it is, there's a little bit of an X factor, a little bit of just something is missing and it's drifting at the moment.”
Stewart on ‘monumental’ Ross County fixture
Hibs head to the Global Energy Stadium as clear favourites this weekend, but last season’s Scottish Cup fourth round defeat to Scottish Championship side and eventual finalists Dunfermline Athletic proved the old cliche that anything can happen in a cup. Stewart believes a result in Dingwall could perhaps give Gray’s men the impetus they need to change their fortunes.
He continued: “At the moment, it's not happening and they need a result. They need something to kickstart them. Hibs at Ross County is monumental as well. Because getting through a semi-final allows you to keep getting the players to believe that something positive can happen. If you don't win that, that really does become dangerous.”
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