Hibs a changed side – under a much-improved manager – two years on from Villa Park Euro play-off drubbing
Hibs a changed side – under a much-improved manager – two years on from Villa Park Euro play-off drubbing.
David Gray on what he was REALLY thinking at 5-0 down as interim boss … Another big European play-off, another away day for Hibs and David Gray.
However, any honest comparisons between Thursday night’s UEFA Conference League match against Legia Warsaw and their previous appearance in the competition do not hold up.
Grey, the interim manager, smiled as he recalled his stint as interim boss, plunging him into a Battle of Britain tie that was already over after the first leg in Edinburgh. He said: “I was five-nil down going to Villa Park, thinking: ‘Oh no …'”
As everyone knows, Lee Johnson was fired by Hibs between the first leg at Easter Road – a five-goal thrashing – and the trip to Birmingham, where stand-in coach Grey at least kept things respectable, a 3-0 loss that was more memorable for the atmosphere than anything else.
The fact that Hibs fans were applauded out of Villa Park by the home crowd after the game says it all about the travelling support on the night.
Backroom coach pitched into interim role
Grey, who was getting used to being in charge by the time Johnson was fired, recalls a learning experience in which he pitted his team against the talents available to Unai Emery that night, including John McGinn.
Grey, who was appointed caretaker after a domestic loss to Livi and asked to manage both the Villa game and the following weekend’s trip to Pittodrie, where he carved out a 2-0 win over Aberdeen, has fond memories of his brief tenure in charge.
He stated: “Actually, when you think about it, going into that scenario, because of the situation I found myself in, you just adapt and go, right, I need to… I actually began with the Aberdeen game.
So we had Aberdeen over the weekend. “I started with my Aberdeen team, not disregarding the European game, because it’s an incredible occasion, atmosphere, and everything else.”
And the players certainly deserved their day at Villa Park. The fans reciprocated for everything we had done.
However, we were already down 5-0. So going there and winning 6-0 at Villa Park didn’t seem likely! So I worked my way back and composed myself there. But they obviously wanted to make sure the players still had the opportunity to visit Villa Park.
“So there were some players you might think, well, I’d like to rest him for Aberdeen, but he’s played every minute of every game, and the opportunity to go to Villa Park, you can’t really turn it down. So it was a slightly different environment.
Easter Road side trailing 2-1 to Legia Warsaw in UEFA Conference League
Hibernians, trailing 2-1 from last week’s home loss, travel to the Polish capital buoyed by Josh Mulligan’s late lifeline goal. They are still outsiders. However, this is far from a lost cause.
“I think this one is very different because of the scoring and also how tight the game at Easter Road last week was, and the fact that our closing spell was very good,” Grey went on: “I believe there are still areas where we can make significant improvements, such as big moments in games and being clinical in certain situations.”
The timing of our goals, particularly the one conceded just before half-time, was probably a bit of a sucker punch to the players after they had played so well in the game.
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