Hibernian

Was David Gray tactically outwitted by Motherwell counterpart Jens Berthel Askou in Hibs' defeat at Fir Park?

Hibs' run of back-to-back wins was ended by a 2-0 loss, compounded by Grant Hanley's first-half red card.

Former Easter Road midfielder Scott Allan thinks Hibs were caught out by the hosts' set-up.

"Hibs will be really disappointed, but they just couldn't get to grips with it," he said on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"They did the set-up all week, expecting Motherwell to have four at the back, and they found out after half an hour it was something different, a back three.

"That's the difficult thing for Gray, because they hadn't changed all season. Askou changed last night and it was arguably Motherwell's performance of the season.

"Once Askou gave you a completely different thing to think about, it's very hard to then change that within the game, against that sort of shape, that was the biggest thing.

"Askou, after the game, basically highlighted the plan was to leave Hanley on the ball. They'd left him on the ball, and once he played the square passes, that was the trigger to press aggressively.

"He wanted to highlight the one v one with Tawanda Maswanhise and Hanley. They pressed the two outside centre-backs, and Hibs just really struggled to deal with it."

Scottish coach and analyst John Walker says the Hibs back three are all susceptible to a howler.

"That's the funny thing about Hibs, when I look at their back three of Rocky Bushiri, Hanley and Jack Iredale, I look at people who are capable of having nines out of tens and going to Ibrox and keeping clean sheets and beating Rangers or Celtic," said Walker.

"But I also look at that defence and every one of them can get a red card and have an absolute howler of a night. Unfortunately for Hanley, who's just came off the back of probably the best week of his footballing life, that's all it was.

"Hibs just need to get through this little spell. Gray's got the experience of turning things around as well, so Hibs will be absolutely fine."

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We asked for your views on Hibernian's 2-0 defeat against Motherwell in which Grant Hanley was sent off in the first half.

Here are some of your comments:

Andy: Hibs will bounce back on Sunday. Celtic still reeling after another European defeat can be beaten at Easter Road.

Bill: This was no shock, we have a poor defence. Rocky Bushiri and Grant Hanley are slow. We are nowhere near the team from last season, departing guys not replaced. Top four or five will be a tough ask. The formation is not working.

Ringo: A terrible performance just when you think Hibs are getting somewhere, they always let you down. Far too many defenders making mistakes, how many times does this happen? If Martin Boyle scores then maybe we are back in the game, how he misses is beyond me.

Neil: A blueprint for how to beat Hibs. Motherwell completely disarmed us and we had no answers. That wasn't individual errors in the first 25 minutes, it was a one-dimensional performance from us, Motherwell completely dominated and we showed no agility in response.

Kenny: From the best game of the season to the worst in four days. What is it with this team? We simply didn't turn up. We only made one clear-cut chance and Boyle missed it when it would have easier to score. We need to get our act together for Sunday. Very disappointed.

Michael: Absolutely shocking performance from Hibs. You could see the formation and shape wasn't working 15 minutes into the game, but David Gray refuses to change. There never seems to be a gameplan or tactics. A few wins against the two bottom clubs of the league, a poor Aberdeen team and fans think we are world class. A good experienced manager would have this team comfortably sitting second.

Scott: Comprehensively outplayed by Motherwell for most of that game, Hibs never really got going after that sloppy opening 20 minutes. The midfield were really poor in possession consistently giving the ball away while the defending was disjointed. Even if Boyle had used his left foot, Hibs were not good enough to get anything from that game. Too many players just didn't turn up which will be a concern for Gray.

Hibernian head coach David Gray feels Motherwell scorer Tawanda Maswanhise was fortunate not to be sent off for an attempted headbutt on Jack Iredale in Hibs' 2-0 defeat by Well at Fir Park on Tuesday. (Edinburgh Evening News - subscription required), external

Read Thursday's Scottish gossip

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Hibernian head coach David Gray told BBC Scotland: "Everything that could have gone wrong in the first 20, 25 minutes certainly did. In the end, we got what we deserved for that 25-minute display.

"Really poor, really slow. Everything we didn't want to do. Motherwell didn't do anything different from what we thought [they would] to catch us out.

"It's unlike us. It's not as if it was individual, there was lots of errors between us in that performance. Compounded by that was a few decisions that went against us, but they came about from really poor play from us so I won't put it down to that.

"We're really up against it, 2-0 down, down to 10 men, but one thing is they didn't throw the towel in. They kept running right to the very end.

"There's a big moment just before half-time [Martin Boyle shot cleared off the line]. If we go in at 2-1 down, having been as poor as we were, it would have been big.

"I can't fault the effort second half, the players tried to keep going, tried to carry a threat. But tonight we got what we deserved.

On Grant Hanley's dismissal... "It was a factual decision, and it's the letter of the law. It's an accidental trip but it's a red card.

On the penalty decision... "I'm not sure what he's meant to do with that. The shot is clearly going miles wide. Grant hasn't made himself any bigger, he's not even trying to block the shot.

"The biggest issue for me is inconsistency. What I just watched at Ibrox four days ago... Inconsistency is the problem. I don't know the rule."

Motherwell swept past 10-man Hibernian at Fir Park, moving level on points with the Edinburgh side, who hang on to third place in the Scottish Premiership after a hapless display.

Read the full match report here.

Have your say here.

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• Motherwell have lost their past two league games against Hibs, last losing three in a row to the Leith side in August 2018.

• Hibs have only lost one of their past eight league visits to Motherwell (W4 D3), going down 2-1 in August 2023 under Lee Johnson.

• Motherwell have lost just one of their past 10 home games in the Scottish Premiership (W5 D4), a 2-1 reverse to Falkirk in October.

• Hibs have only suffered three defeats in their past 18 away games in the Premiership (W7 D8), including just one in their latest eight (W3 D4), a 1-0 derby loss to Hearts in October.

• Motherwell have won their past three midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) league games, last winning four in a row in January 2020. Meanwhile, Hibernian are winless in nine Premiership matches played on a Tuesday (D6 L3), drawing their past five in a row on this day of the week.

Matty Fairnie
Fan writer

Despite a miss he'll want to forget, Kieron Bowie got back among the goals last Saturday and the Scotland striker will have pleased David Gray with his all-round play in the win over Dundee.

With five goals in 20 games, Bowie has not had the strike rate he would want so far this season.

A marginal offside call went against him at Livingston and he could have been forgiven for thinking it wasn't his day again on Saturday when he passed up two glorious chances before eventually finding the net with some style for his first goal in 10 games to put Hibs ahead.

The key thing for Bowie is he got into the right positions. Good strikers miss easy chances all the time, they're just there to score the next one.

We haven't seen that enough from the 23-year-old this season, but Saturday showed what a great eye for goal the boy has.

If Bowie keeps finding himself between the goals to take advantage of the work of the likes of Nicky Cadden, Martin Boyle, and Jamie McGrath around him, then he could fire himself into Steve Clarke's World Cup squad next summer.

That's a huge incentive for Bowie, and he'll be impossible to ignore if he puts in more performances like Saturday's.

The same can be said for Josh Mulligan. The 23-year-old has made Clarke's squad once already and been a joy to watch in the middle of the park this season. He too should be looking to shine over the rest of the season to give Clarke something to think about.

We just have to try to find a Scottish granny for goalkeeper Raphael Sallinger. The big Austrian pulled off two saves that had the crowd off their feet on Saturday, and a Scottish link would solve a big issue for the Scotland boss.

You can find Matty Fairnie at Longbangers podcast, external

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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David Gray has praised his players for turning Hibernian's fortunes around after a momentous moment 12 months ago that changed the destiny of both the club and their head coach.

It will be one year to the day on Wednesday since Hibs snatched a last-minute equaliser against Aberdeen in a dramatic 3-3 draw at Easter Road.

Hibs were languishing at the bottom of the Scottish Premiership with only the one league win at the time.

A section of fans were calling for the rookie manager to be sacked, but after the draw against the Dons, they went on an unbeaten run that lasted until March and they eventually finished in third spot in the table.

"It's been quite a quick year to be honest," Gray said as he looked forward to Tuesday's trip to face Motherwell with his side sitting in third again, three places and three points above their hosts.

"When I think about that first period, I certainly learnt a lot in the first year in terms of management, and what my first year looked like from maybe being 30 seconds away from potentially losing your job.

"When you think about the fact that we went, was it 3-2 down with 30 seconds to go?"

Gray suggested the "success" of last season had brought a "feel-good factor around the club" that has them "moving in the right direction" and currently in "a good position".

However, he insisted "that's all we've done though" and there is still hard work to be done.

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

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Hibernian head coach David Gray has been speaking to the media as his side prepare for Tuesday night's clash at Motherwell.

Here are the main points:

• Gray says there's been a real "feel-good factor" growing in the last 12 months at Easter Road, a year on from their 3-3 draw with Aberdeen that sparked their change of fortunes

• The Hibs boss knows he will lose a number of players to international duty in January due to the Africa Cup of Nations but believes his side "have the squad to cope".

• Gray adds that processes are "all in place" for the January transfer window when it opens and they'll look to "improve" areas of the squad if they can.

• His side are looking forward to facing and "exciting" Motherwell for the first time this season but are aware of the "threats" Jens Berthel Askou's side could pose.

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

Hibernian picked up another important victory against Dundee on Saturday and they've got three players in my team of the week.

Raphael Sallinger made a string of top saves to frustrate Dundee to grab a clean sheet as Hibs took all three points.

Unlucky with a terrific effort off the crossbar but Jamie McGrath would get his fifth Premiership goal of the season with a fine low strike just inside the near post.

Watch the Sportscene panel analyse Kieron Bowie's performance for Hibernian against Dundee in the Scottish Premiership.

Watch all the highlights from Hibernian's 2-0 win over Dundee in the Scottish Premiership.

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We asked for your views on Hibs' 2-0 victory over Dundee on Saturday.

Here's what you had to say:

Martin: Great performance where we controlled the ball for large periods. The pleasing thing for me is our midfield three are really starting to gel especially Dan Barlaser who was outstanding. Special mention to Raphael Sallinger who made two top drawer saves, now onto Fir Park on Tuesday which should be a cracker.

Willie: Some very good moments in the game, two good goals. The subs were an issue and goalkeeper makes two great saves. The last 20-25 minutes should have been a lot comfier than it was.

Gordon: Hibs cruised through this game and should have had it done and dusted by half time. Grant Hanley strolls through every league game, and Jamie McGrath was excellent as well. Our keeper had two brilliant saves late on but Hibs deserved the win and it could have been more. Onwards and upwards.

Paul: A routine victory for the Hibees, total control, the only negative is that we didn't score more goals. Man of the match for me was McGrath, he was immense. I think Sallinger is improving each game in goals. The next two games are huge maximum points would make us serious candidates to go close to winning the league.

Kenny: Great all round performance but just a pity we missed the early chances and the game would have been over by half time. Great to see Kieron Bowie scoring and there were some great individual performances and also some very good teamwork. This is more like it.

George: Best league performance of season so far. Great football, played Dundee off the park. But again, sloppy finishing almost cost us as Dundee upped the anti in final 15 minutes.

Back-to-back wins for Hibs and back-to-back clean sheets.

Hibs fans must be happy with a comfortable three points at Easter Road, even if there were a couple of late scares.

Read the match report here.

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"We could have had the game out of sight earlier," Hibs head coach Daivd Gray told BBC Scotland. "All in all, a really good day's work.

"Credit to Dundee, they had a real go towards the end and the goalkeeper makes a big save, which allows us to see the game out pretty comfortably.

"I'll not mention Kieron's miss because he probably heard me from the sidelines at the time, and he takes his goal really well. Probably the hardest chance he had in the game.

"The pleasing thing for me is he's back on the scoresheet and he keeps getting himself in those positions.

"I believe there's a lot more to come from Kieron Bowie. He's got a massive journey ahead of him. It's not just goals that he brings to the team, there's the unselfish work he does that goes unseen at times."

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Hibs midfielder Joe Newell and Alasana Manneh both played 60 minutes in a bounce game as they close in on a return to action.

Dylan Levitt could be available but Josh Campbell, Miguel Chaiwa and Rudi Molotnikov are out.

Dundee boss Steven Pressley expects to have a full squad available, with Clark Robertson and Fin Robertson both fit again after missing the defeat by Rangers.

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David Gray aims to "kickstart" Hibernian's home form by adding to Dundee's woes on Saturday.

Hibs have just one league victory in five at Easter Road this season and suffered a first Premiership home loss in 11 months when Rangers prevailed 1-0.

Gray's men opened the season with a 2-1 win at Dundee, who are now second bottom having lost three in a row.

"I think both sides are in different places," Gray said.

"We are looking at it as an opportunity to kickstart our home form. We want to start picking up three points at home off the back of a couple of good results recently.

"We want to try and get more points than we had in the first round so that's the challenge for the players. It'll be a difficult game but one the players should be feeling good about.

"To have successful seasons domestically your home form needs to be strong. This season we've maybe not had the points return we'd want but we've not been losing games. The challenge now is to make sure we have really strong home form."

Gray is hoping to have Dylan Levitt back in contention while there are a few injury concerns.

"Dylan Levitt is back training," he added.

"Miguel Chaiwa picked up a virus or food poisoning so he will probably be out. Josh Campbell got an infection in the toe so he's a doubt."

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Scotland defender Grant Hanley would currently be turning out for Lechia Gdansk rather than Hibs if John Carver had got his way.

Hanley, 33, has been an impressive addition to the Hibs backline since joining on a free in the summer and is a key player in Steve Clarke's Scotland squad, who are World Cup bound next summer after topping their qualifying group in dramatic fashion.

Carver, who stepped down as Scotland assistant in June to focus solely on his role as Lechia Gdansk manager, has revealed he tried to bring Hanley to Poland.

"I actually had a conversation with Grant about him coming across to Lechia Gdansk," Carver told BBC Sort.

"He was up for it, before he signed for Hibernian, he was up for coming across. But we have a criteria here that we only sign players of a certain age.

"Obviously Grant is getting on a little bit, but what a guy, what a super guy, what a character, what a professional, and he deserves to go to the World Cup more than anybody."