Dnipro is our best chance

Although Dnipro remain as unknown in this country as they did when Hearts first came across them 15 years ago, Mowbray believes they will still provide formidable opposition for his young side.

But, given the fact that Hibs, unseeded in yesterday afternoon's first round draw in Monaco, could have been paired with Dutch giants Feyenoord, crack Spanish side Sevilla, Serie A's Sampdoria or Swiss champions FC Basel, Mowbray feels his hope that his team wouldn't find themselves massive underdogs has been fulfilled.

The second the two sides were pitched against each other, feverish activity broke out behind the scenes at Easter Road with Mowbray and his backroom staff trawling websites to begin building up a clearer picture of their opposition.

With Dnipro having just two League games before travelling to Edinburgh for the first leg of the tie on Thursday, September 15, chief scout John Park was immediately dispatched on the long journey to the Ukraine. He will take in tomorrow's match in Dnipro's run-down 30,000 capacity Meteor Stadium against Illichivets and will most likely make the long haul again four days before the game at Easter Road to watch Hibs' rivals in their away clash with Vorskla.

While Dnipro finished fourth in the Ukranian League last season - a distant 32 points behind champions Shakhtar Donetsk - they have made a poor start to the current campaign, losing four of their first six matches to lie in ninth place.

However, given the fact Dnipro finished top of Group C in last year's UEFA Cup with victories over Club Brugge, Utrecht and Austria Wien to their name, Mowbray is well aware that they will prove dangerous opponents.

And to underline that view, Mowbray pointed to the fact that Dnipro have seven players in Oleg Blokhin's Ukrainian squad for next weekend's World Cup qualifier with Georgia - goalie Vyacheslav Kernazenko, defenders Aleksandr Radchenko, Vladimir Elerski, and Andrey Rusol and midfielders Sergey Nazarenko, Aleksandr Rykun and Oleg Shelaev.

Given that Hibs are not in action because of Scotland's own vital World Cup clash with Italy at Hampden, Mowbray may well weigh up whether he'll gain any further insight by travelling himself to take in that match.

Given that Hearts UEFA Cup clashes with Dnipro took place 15 years ago, the Gorgie outfit drawing 1-1 in the Ukraine before cruising to a 3-1 win at Tynecastle, Mowbray won't be able to turn to his arch-rivals for assistance.

He said: "I know a great deal about the likes of Dutch and Spanish football but the Ukraine? I have to hold my hand up and say 'No'. However, we have a few weeks before we play them and we will find out as much as we can in that period.

"I did see Shakhtar Donetsk, who are top of the Ukrainian League again, play Arsenal at Highbury a couple of years ago and they were a very technical side so you'd expect a similar style from Dnipro.

The logistics of getting to Dnipropetrovsk, in the east of the Ukraine, could be a problem - particularly for fans.

Mowbray said: "It's not going to be easy getting there but we have to balance that against the other sides we could have drawn.

"Seville have just sold one of their strikers, Julio Baptista to Real Madrid for almost 20 million and bought Fredi Kanoute from Spurs and Feyenoord are one of the giants of the Dutch game.

"Dnipro is going to be a tough, tough game for us but our aim is to try to get through to the group stages if we can. That would be good for the players in terms of their development, gaining further European experience but it would also be good financially.

"So, rather than some of the other teams, maybe this one gives us an opportunity to get through but we'll have to wait and see."

And, while many managers would prefer the first match to be away, Mowbray insisted he was happy enough to have Dnipro come to Edinburgh first.

He said: "If I had the choice I'd prefer the first one at home. Sometimes if you don't get the result when the first game is away you can become a bit cavalier in the home tie and become vulnerable to that away goal.

"While we won't approach the home game too cautiously, we won't be over-cavalier and, if we can keep a clean sheet, we'll give ourselves a real opportunity.

"And I don't see why, against anyone at Easter Road, we can't create chances. But we'll have to work hard, restrict their openings and then when we get over there give it our best shot."

Former Hearts star Alan McLaren, part of Joe Jordan's side which enjoyed that win over Dnipro, agrees that the Ukrainian side represents Hibs best chance of making the group stage.

Although things have changed since 1990, when Ukraine was part of the old Soviet Union, McLaren said: "It was a long, long journey and the facilities were pretty basic to say the least. The only reason we are even slightly aware of Dnipro is because Hearts played them all those years ago.

"But it still remains something of an uncharted territory for Hibs. I wouldn't imagine there will be many tapes and videos of their games going about for Tony Mowbray and his coaches to study.

"I can remember when we drew Dnipro, it felt like an anti-climax. We were waiting to hear who we had got, just like the Hibs boys were yesterday, only to end up looking at each other puzzled by this unknown team.

"You expect to get the big glamour names like Hibs did with AEK Athens a few years ago but I'd agree with Tony that, given the teams they could have got, Dnipro probably gives them their best chance of making the group stages.

"And if they do that then they'll get the big names, the well-known sides and the chance for the club to make some decent money."