Shaun Maloney admits concern over Kevin Nisbet injury as Hibs boss hails point against 'unique' Celtic

Hibs boss Shaun Maloney has expressed concern for Kevin Nisbet after the Scotland striker limped off during the goalless draw with Celtic.

Hibs' manager Shaun Maloney during the 0-0 draw with Celtic. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)

Nisbet went down clutching his left knee and immediately signalled for help from the sidelines after a challenge from Carl Starfelt that saw the Celtic defender pick up a yellow card midway through the first half.

Hibs recovered from the injury setback to claim a credible point in a goalless draw that also brought an end to Celtic’s eight-match winning run in the Scottish Premiership.

Maloney said: “It doesn't look too promising for Kevin. We'll probably find out tomorrow. It's his left knee. It wasn't the worst tackle ever, but when you try and stop a counter-attack like that, it's not great. With these things you have to wait for the scans, but it doesn't look too great at the moment.

"It was a big blow to lose him. Christian Doidge did excellent when he came on - that was like the Christian of old so I'm pleased for him.”

Maloney also stressed he had no worries over playing Ryan Porteous after a week that saw the defender charged over an alleged assault following an incident outside Dalkeith Miners Club that allegedly left a women injured.

“After speaking to him the last couple of days – and because he was available – I sensed he was focussed on the game. At that point the decision was quite clear,” Maloney said.

The Hibs boss was full of praise for his team’s “very good” performance.

“We definitely earned that point with a lot of hard work. The players gave me everything. I'm really proud of them," he said.

“The whole team defended excellently. The way Celtic play is quite unique with what they do with their full-backs. We had to defend that and the attacking players had to defend more than I'd like. As energy levels dropped, we got deeper but they showed amazing heart. The players gave me everything. Every successful team has to have a bit of grit. The best teams in our league have a side to them like that. We showed it against Hearts, we showed it against Ross County at times and we showed it today. We have to show that every game.”

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