Storylines aplenty as Hibs enter the business end of the season - with European football the main aim

On Saturday against St Mirren Hibs will restart their cinch Premiership campaign, for five final games that could have a big say on the Capital club’s summer plans.

Finish third or fourth and they are guaranteed at least some European football regardless of who wins the Scottish Cup. If Celtic win the final, then fifth place will be enough. But achieving the bare minimum and relying on another result goes against Lee Johnson’s principals. ‘Control the controllables’, is a favourite phrase of the manager, but it isn’t always that straightforward for Hibs, who have history of squeezing into Europe on the back of the slimmest of goal difference margins. And it’s not just final league position – there are so many separate storylines at play.

Resurgent Aberdeen, wounded Hearts

Aberdeen are currently nine points ahead of Hibs and on a run of seven wins under Barry Robson, their last success a 2-0 victory over Rangers. They face the Gers again this weekend and Hearts, who recovered from a first derby defeat of the season and indeed their first loss to Hibs since Boxing Day 2019 by smashing six past Ross County, host Celtic while Hibs welcome St Mirren. The ideal scenario would be three points for Hibs, and defeats for the other two clubs but the course of cinch football never did run smooth.

There are storylines aplenty as Hibs enter the business end of the season

Hibs can do their bit by defeating the Buddies – no mean feat in itself, given their performances under Stephen Robinson – but the rest is out of their hands. The second post-split game – a trip to Aberdeen – could be pivotal ahead of back-to-back home games against the Celtic and Rangers, before a final-day crosstown trip to face Hearts.

Nisbet’s future

Come the end of the season, Kevin Nisbet will have 12 months remaining on his Hibs contract. He’s also likely to have half the English Championship plus a smattering of overseas clubs keeping tabs on his progress. After a projected January move to Millwall collapsed at the eleventh hour, the Scotland striker could very well be on his way this summer as Hibs look to avoid a repeat of the Ryan Porteous scenario. Nisbet’s ten goals in 14 league games is impressive enough but should he add to that tally, he could not only send Hibs to Europe and depart on a high but he might also increase his own transfer interest and potentially get an even bigger move.

Johnson’s redemption?

On more than one occasion this season, Hibs fans have called for Johnson’s head – after the winless run before the World Cup, again after the two derby defeats in January, and a third time when Hibs lost to both halves of the Old Firm followed by Motherwell and Dundee United. The seven-game unbeaten run after the derby defeats earned him a reprieve, and beating Hearts and then securing top-six did likewise last month.

He has not been without his problems this season. A catalogue of injuries, poor recruitment, and some fairly horrendous refereeing calls have all impacted results. But so have some of his tactical decisions. He is not without blame, which he has acknowledged. But there is a feeling that just squeezing in to Europe won’t quite cut it with some of the more vocal sections of the fanbase. It probably works in his favour that Hibs have to attain a certain pattern of results to secure guaranteed European football. If they manage that, the knives may be put away for a couple of more months. If they don’t…

Director of Football

Hibs are likely to have a Director of Football in place in time for the start of the post-split fixtures after four months of searching. What that will bring with it remains to be seen although we know it will almost certainly have an impact on summer transfer activity. Only three names of the five in contention have slipped out and each one would bring with it a different approach.

Between now and the end of the season we are likely to get at least some insight into how the revamped senior management structure at Easter Road will look – and what direction the club will be going in, depending on who gets the nod for such a vital role. Will it be one of the names out there, or might there be a curveball?

I think we’re a loan now

Hibs have five loan players on their books, each with their own story to write in the game. Manchester United’s Will Fish and CJ Egan-Riley of Burnley have had their first taste of regular men’s football, while Matthew Hoppe has added a seventh club and his fifth country in his fledgling career but has also benefited from more gametime than he might have had at parent club Middlesbrough. St. Gallen’s Élie Youan has been one of the standout performers for Hibs in an extremely up-and-down campaign, while Mykola Kukharevych of Troyes has shown his class in fewer appearances than he would have liked, the Ukrainian forward falling victim to the club’s injury curse between the World Cup and early March. There is a clause in the Youan deal allowing Hibs to buy him outright, which they are keen to do, but the situation with the other four is not quite so clear-cut.

Maybe McKirdy?

It has not been the most straightforward of campaigns for Harry McKirdy. Niggly injuries, in and out of the team even when fit, and no goals or assists despite coming close on a number of occasions. As with most forwards the understanding is that once they find the net, and cast off the albatross, they can find a bit of form. Despite his woes McKirdy doesn’t appear to have lost an ounce of his confidence – and that could be exactly what Hibs need in their final five matches.