Nick Montgomery is determined for his Hibernian (Hibs) side to showcase their true quality when they face Rangers again in a Scottish Cup match, following their recent league encounter where they suffered a 3-0 defeat. Despite the challenging circumstances in their previous meeting, Montgomery sees signs of encouragement in his team’s performance.
During their last encounter, Hibs faced personnel shortages due to injuries, leading to makeshift defensive arrangements such as deploying left-back Jordan Obita as a center-back and giving teenager Kanayo Megwa his debut at right-back. Despite the makeshift lineup, Montgomery believes there were positive aspects to their performance and acknowledges the need for improvement.
Montgomery emphasizes that his squad is now in a better condition than during their previous encounters with Rangers. Despite the challenges they faced in their last meeting, he highlights the competitive nature of the game and the missed opportunities that could have changed the outcome. He also mentions the introduction of new players like Myziane Maolida and the ongoing process of rebuilding the team.
Overall, Montgomery remains optimistic about his team’s prospects and aims to demonstrate their improvement and resilience in the upcoming Scottish Cup match against Rangers.
Nick Montgomery reflects on Hibernian’s previous encounters with Rangers, finding positives despite the challenging results. In their recent defeat, he acknowledges the team’s performance but emphasizes the need to avoid conceding avoidable goals against a strong opponent like Rangers.
In their previous match at Ibrox, despite the 4-0 scoreline, Montgomery points out several encouraging statistics that reflect Hibernian’s competitiveness, including possession and final third entries. He believes his team played well for significant periods and took the game to Rangers, especially considering it was early in his tenure at the club.
However, Montgomery highlights a crucial moment where they conceded a sloppy goal, which ultimately affected the outcome of the game. Despite the setbacks, he remains optimistic about Hibernian’s capabilities and looks forward to addressing their mistakes in the upcoming matches against Rangers.
“So up until that point, we were more than getting into the game, their fans were getting frustrated because we had so much of the ball.
“Then, for me, there is a clear foul on Joe Newell for the second goal just before half-time – and that killed the game. Joe gets hacked at the edge of the box, there is play on, and we concede right before half-time.
“From that moment on, it was an uphill task, and the second half was going to be tough – but we still had three or four good chances to score. If you don’t put your chances away and give away sloppy goals, you’re not going to win. In both games against Rangers, the score line hasn’t reflected the performance. And, like I say, we’re stronger now.”
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