Jake Doyle-Hayes: Hibs unable to put timescale on return after 'complicated' ankle injury but club pleased with progress

The Irish midfielder has not played since August and went under knife to cure problem

Hibs are unable to put a date on midfield Jake Doyle-Hayes’ return to action, although the Irishman is “progressing really well” in his recovery from ankle surgery.

Doyle-Hayes has not featured for Hibs since coming on as a substitute in a 3-0 Europa League defeat by Aston Villa on August 23. The former St Mirren playmaker has struggled to shrug off a freak blow to his ankle in training from his ex-manager Lee Johnson more than a year ago and went under the knife once again in the autumn in a bid to finally rectify the problem. Current Hibs boss Nick Montgomery admitted that the 24-year-old’s injury is “complicated” but believes the operation was a success and looks forward to having him back in the first-team squad.

“Jake is still recovering, progressing really well, and he's a player that can add in that midfield area,” said Montgomery. “But until he's in full training, it's hard to put a date on. Once he's in full training, he will need match minutes, bounce games. It's been a complicated one – I had something similar in my career. I had an irritation in my ankle and for whatever reason, there was no real reason why. It turned out to be a tiny fragment of bone that was irritating inside the ankle joint so I think Jake's had something similar, they've cleaned that out. The structure of everything in his ankle is perfect so hopefully now he's on the road to recovery."

Jake Doyle-Hayes, pictured on crutches recently at Hampden, has already missed several months of the season.

Doyle-Hayes is not the only long-term injury victim at Hibs, with right-back Chris Cadden battling back from a ruptured Achilles tendon and Harry McKirdy recovering from heart surgery. “We're definitely not going to rush the boys that injured because if you've been on a long-term injury, it's not about rushing, it's about getting them right and being able to compete in the team,” added Montgomery. “That's why we've got good medical staff who work every day to try and push them on.”

Hibs are currently fifth in the Premiership after a 2-1 win away at Dundee last weekend and take on Aberdeen on league duty this Sunday.