Hibernian suffer triple injury blow ahead of Scottish Premiership clash with Rangers as Fresh update emerges
Lee Johnson has confirmed Hibernian are set to be without three players for their Scottish Premiership clash against Rangers at Ibrox.
Hibs are set to be without Jake Doyle-Hayes, who was expected to return at the end of November after undergoing surgery on his ankle (Daily Record, 19 November).
Martin Boyle is also absent with an ACL injury after undergoing surgery, with the Australian now likely to miss the remainder of the campaign. Johnson also revealed that he would be without right-back Lewis Miller for the clash.
“Jake Doyles-Hayes is not quite ready, unfortunately. Lewis Miller is also unavailable and some of the return-to-play players are at very different stages in their recovery,” said Johnson (Hibernian official website, 13 December).
“We know Boyle’s out, which is a big blow for us but we are supporting him in every way we can.
“The real positives are that Aiden McGeady, Kevin Nisbet and Harry McKirdy are all out on the grass and have been getting some good minutes in the bank. Kyle Magennis is out there as well and that is a great boost for us and has given everyone a lift.”
Must win
Although the pressure is yet to really ramp up on Michael Beale, there will be a feeling that this is a must-win game to really keep pace with Celtic in the Scottish Premiership. In fact, the 42-year-old will be hoping his side can put together a perfect record for when The Hoops make the trip to Ibrox on 2 January.
Johnson’s side have been struggling this season and this is the ideal chance for Beale to bring the positive feeling back to Ibrox after a disappointing campaign under Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Johnson’s men will look to frustrate and unsettle their hosts, however, the Light Blues should have more than enough quality to really hurt their visitors on Thursday evening (14 December).
It’s certainly time for fans to be entertained and a positive performance and result will be the ideal way for the new Rangers boss to start his Ibrox tenure. The likes of Ryan Kent will be eager for a clean slate, and Beale’s appointment has offered the winger the chance to show the Ibrox faithful that he remains a key player for the Gers.
In other Rangers news, a BBC pundit has savaged a senior player at Ibrox after what he saw him do last week.