Just when it looked like they had turned a corner, the Hibees have hit another low point in their season.
No wins and only two goals in their last five league games, and now Joe Newell’s grit and guile missing for the next couple of weeks due to injury, the circus that is Hibernian’s 2021/22 season could be set to continue.
The midfield has been an especially weak spot in the side this campaign. A number of players in the centre of the park have failed to inspire in Leith, with a total of eight different combinations used so far this season.
However, with Newell joining Magennis on their merry-go-round injury list, Alex Gogic’s departure on loan and Josh Campbell losing more confidence with every game, there are a limited number of midfield partners for Jake Doyle-Hayes.
That being said, Newell’s injury could give Maloney a chance to experiment. With it being an attack-minded player that Hibs are screaming out for he may give an old ringmaster one last crack of the whip.
Scott Allan has started seven matches in all competitions for the Hibees this season.
The playmaker has netted one goal and set up five in the first six months of the season, and despite very strong rumours that he would depart in the January transfer window, he still finds himself as a Hibernian player.
Having only played a total of 82 minutes under Shaun Maloney since he was appointed in late December, it seems as though the 30-year-old isn’t part of the new manager’s plans.
Maloney’s structured 3-4-2-1 formation looks to be the major reason for Allan’s omissions.
The two central midfielders are instructed to do a fair amount of running and look to control possession, but don’t offer a lot going forward. The partnership requires balance, which Newell and Doyle-Hayes provide as they are fairly similar players, but on current form it would suggest they are too similar.
Bringing something different into that role may bring the good times (and the goals) back to Leith.
Everyone knows the quality that Scott Allan possesses. I am not for a minute saying that he is the player he once was, or that his health allows him to play 90 minutes week in week out.
However, anytime Allan walks on to the park, there is a good chance that you’ll be witness to a moment of magic. His vision and weight of pass have been covered a million times but it’s the ability to drive with the ball that Hibs are desperately needing at the moment.
No one in the side has been willing to carry the ball forward as of late, allowing defences to stay structured as they watch Hibs knock the ball side to side.
A player who is willing to get the ball to feet and move with it up the park is Scott Allan.
With the ability to penetrate defences with his passing, Allan’s inclusion would allow wide players like Cadden, Mitchell/Doig and Mueller to make runs into space and be confident they will be found.
The defensive side of the game is where Allan could struggle, especially in the two. He will need to run his socks off if he is to replace Newell, although he would come back into the side with a point to prove to Maloney and to any future suitors.
The new manager is trying to implement his style of football on a team, and as much as it requires time and patience from the Hibernian support, it is desperately lacking creativity.
Is he a long-term replacement for Newell? Absolutely not. But we have at least two games where the pure footballing brain of Scott Allan could make all the difference, and give the team that boost of confidence going into the business end of the season.
Conal is currently studying journalism at Robert Gordon University, you can read more of his work on his blog by clicking here.
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