Neil Lennon to Hibs: David Gray has his say on possible return for ex-Celtic boss

David Gray has welcomed the prospect of a familiar face returning to Easter Road after it emerged Neil Lennon is being strongly linked with the vacant manager’s position.

Neil Lennon tasted success with Hibs, including winning the Championship in 2017

Gray will oversee his second match as interim manager on Tuesday night when Hibs host Dundee at Easter Road looking for their first home league win since September.

As it stands, it’s increasingly likely the former skipper will be charged with leading Hibs out at Hampden ahead of Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup final against Celtic. One attraction in re-hiring Lennon is that he already knows many of the players and could step straight back in.

The Northern Irishman was in charge of Hibs for two-and-a-half years before being suspended in January 2019 after a row with club officials. He left shortly afterwards. Gray described Lennon as having an “aura” about him.

“He brought success to the club,” said Gray. “When he was here we won the Championship, I was the captain and I had a good relationship with him.

“He was very demanding, the standards he expected were very high. He has managed at a high level and he has an aura about him and he demands respect and rightly so.

“It’s nothing to do with me if he comes back or not, that’s up to the powers that be moving forward. I’m not getting caught up with anything, it’s just about focusing on the job myself, Eddie May and Craig Samson have to do.”

Gray stressed the players cannot afford to let their thoughts stray past this evening’s rescheduled league fixture as Hibs look to raise spirits with an overdue three points at Easter Road. They have not won a home league game since beating St Johnstone 1-0 on 26 September.

“I can’t look past the Dundee game,” he said. “That was my same position for the St Mirren game. My full focus was on that game and now our attention turns to Dundee.

“By the end of the week, if the position is still the same, then we can start talking about that. But the full focus has to be on Dundee.”

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