As mentioned in our earlier article on Ange Postecoglou’s media conference this afternoon, the former Celtic forward, Shaun Maloney could be in the dugout as the opposition’s manager on Sunday afternoon at Hampden Park. According to reports in the tabloids, Maloney could be signed up by Hibs in time for him to take the team at the weekend.
Both Daily Record and Scottish Sun appear to have been briefed and are both this afternoon claiming that Hibs are looking for a new boss who brings an attacking philosophy to the game. Maloney would certainly fit that bill, having been under the leadership of Roberto Martinez at Belgium, working along Thierry Henry also for a spell. The former Celtic winger was always a forward thinking sort of player and that has not changed now he is a coach.
Apparently ex-Hibernian manager Neil Lennon was in the running along with Derek McInnes and Alex Neil who was released by Preston North End a few months back. It looks now, however, that Maloney is their chosen man and Cheif Executive, Ben Kensall, said that it looked to be coming to a conclusion on Tuesday’s address to the support.
The Hibs CEO said: “We are undergoing an incredibly thorough and strategic approach as we recruit a new manager. As a club you must continuously plan for the future and have a clear plan in-place for every eventuality due to the fast-moving and ever-changing nature of the sport. This has allowed us to stay in control of this rigorous process.
“We have a clear vision for the football club. We want to acquire a manager who has an attacking mentality and is progressive and hungry for the opportunity to build something special here at a big club in Hibs.
Our process has been robust, and there is clarity and a support plan for the manager we select that will help us achieve our long-term ambitions. We are coming to a conclusion and we will update supporters in the near feature regarding an appointment.”
It will be intriguing to see how Maloney gets on at Hibs if indeed he will be the chosen candidate for the empty hotseat in Leith – he’s apparently looking at former Celt Gary Caldwell as his assistant manager. There was suggestions that he could have came to Celtic in the summer when we were looking at possible Neil Lennon replacements. The coach is highly regarded in the football world and it was obvious to see why at Tannadice when he was on Sky Sports next to the bumbling Kris Boyd.
Sunday just got a whole lot more interesting…
Paul Gillespie
