David Gray, the interim manager of Hibs, praised Myziane Maolida for a last-minute spellbinding performance in green and white. and then acknowledged that the prolific winger will face competition from several teams over the busy summer.
In the last game of a disappointing season, Maolida scored his 11th goal in 17 starts for Hibs as the visitors lost a lead against Livingston at Almondvale and ended up drawing 1-1. During the offseason, there will undoubtedly be a lot of interest in the Comoros international, who is still under contract with Hertha Berlin for another year.
Caretaker coach Gray said the January loan signing, sold on a transfer to Scotland by sacked manager Nick Montgomery’s personal pitch, had more than earned his keep, insisting: “He’s been brilliant on and off the pitch, comes in and does his work, works extremely hard.” He is a great professional, and his quality is evident.
“He clearly scores goals. Even today, he was perhaps a little quiet during the game and appeared exhausted. “But he creates that one magical moment that propels us to the forefront. Overall, as a game, that was the missing piece – that little bit of quality to go and win it, if I’m being honest.”
before asked directly about the possibility of keeping Maolida, who had been languishing as an unused substitute in the Hertha B squad before Hibs threw him a lifeline, Gray replied, “That’s not a matter for me. I was instructed to prepare them as best I could between last week and today.
“Moving forward, I’m confident there will be many bidders for him if he becomes available. But that is a subject for the next manager and the football club’s decision-makers.
“I believe that acquiring a player of that caliber will only benefit your group. You see what he can do. “But there is a lot of quality in that dressing room right now as well. I’ve said it numerous times.
“This is a good squad. It needs to be expanded because there are a lot of players out of contract and on loan returning to their clubs.
“So it gives the new manager an opportunity to bring his own players in – and put his own stamp on the team.”
Addressing his own aspirations of becoming Montgomery’s full-time replacement, Gray, who is currently in his fourth term as interim manager, said: “Listen, every time I’ve been in this position, it’s always been in a difficult circumstance. As I’ve previously stated, the goal is to elicit a reaction from the players. And from there, I’m quite aware that others have lost their jobs, so it’s not always about me.
“On reflection, every time I’ve been in the position, I’ve gotten a little taste for it, trying to figure out and judge what went well and what didn’t. I believe that every time I’ve been in this position, I’ve learned from previous experiences, which has undoubtedly helped me.”
