Hibs Struggle After Gray Exit as Aberdeen Drop Points

It has been a bruising week at Easter Road. Nick Montgomery’s replacement, the popular and relatively successful David Gray, has already been shown the door after just six league games, and the squad have worn that decision on their faces.

Into that mood stepped Adam Potter, back in his second spell as a coach at Hibs, trying to drag the dressing room out of its slump. He spoke about dealing with the blow, about clinging to the positives, about lifting the atmosphere.

For 45 minutes, none of it landed.

Aside from the bright, busy work of Callum Wright, Hibs looked flat. Nervy. They repeatedly surrendered possession, feeding an Aberdeen side that were delighted to spring forward on the counter. Every loose touch felt like an invitation. Aberdeen accepted most of them.

The visitors, reshaped and re-energised under Stephen Robinson, looked the more assured outfit. Hibs, still reeling from the Gray decision, played as if the ball was a problem to be got rid of rather than a tool to be used.

Then the game changed.

Hibs came out after the break like a different team. They played with more bite, more directness, more aggression. Passes went forward quicker, tackles snapped in, the crowd finally had something to grab onto. The equaliser, when it arrived, felt earned rather than fortunate.

The second half had a pulse. Hibs pressed higher, broke quicker and, for the first time in the afternoon, looked like a side playing with a point to prove. They merited their goal and the shift in momentum.

But as the international break looms, the same doubts hang in the air over Leith.

Why can this team almost never stitch together a full 90 minutes? Why do they start so slowly, so often? And, beneath all of that, is there enough quality in this squad for any manager to mould into a consistent side?

Those are the problems waiting on the next permanent appointment. With club football now on hold for three weeks, the identity of that new figurehead will dominate the conversation just as much as any tactical tweak.

Aberdeen, for their part, arrive at this pause with a clearer sense of direction. Robinson made headlines earlier in the season when he claimed “shape is for pundits” while persisting with a 4-3-3 as his side struggled. Results and performances forced a rethink.

He has gone back to what worked so well for him at St Mirren: three centre-backs, two strikers, structure with teeth. The impact has been obvious. Aberdeen look more secure, far sharper in their press, and far more dangerous on the break, especially with the pace they carry up front.

Two players have underpinned that shift. At the back, Mats Knoester has emerged as the club’s standout defender, reading danger, winning duels, bringing a calm edge to their back line. In midfield, Afeez Aremu has been everywhere – snapping into challenges, recovering the ball, then keeping things simple to launch attacks. Between them, they’ve altered the feel of this team.

That is why the manner of the dropped points will grate with Robinson.

For all Hibs’ improvement after the interval, Aberdeen had done the hard part when Kevin Nisbet produced a touch of class – a sharp touch, a swift turn, and a clinical finish – to put them in front. It was his third goal in as many games, underlining his importance and raising a fresh issue: who else will shoulder the scoring burden for Aberdeen over the season?

Then came the lapse. A needless challenge from Milne opened the door, and Hibs barged through it. One rash moment, and what should have been three points for a side on the mend turned into a frustrating share of the spoils.

Robinson, though, can at least see foundations forming after a torrid start to the campaign. The system suits his players, key figures are stepping up, and the team now looks like it knows what it wants to be.

Hibs cannot yet say the same. The next manager inherits a club caught between performances like that second half and the anxiety of the first. Which version turns up for the rest of the season will decide whether this is just a rocky spell or something far more serious.