Lee Johnson hires two Hibs assistants as former Celtic and Rangers coach heads back to Scotland - but one piece of jigsaw missing

New Hibs manager Lee Johnson has assembled the majority of his coaching team after confirming the appointments of Jamie McAllister and Adam Owen as his assistants.

Johnson took over as Hibs boss last month following the sacking of Shaun Maloney and the capital club have confirmed that McAllister and Owen will be his No 2s at Easter Road.

Furthermore, club legend and twice caretaker manager David Gray will remain as part of the first-team coaching staff. Gray had spoken about his desire to remain at Hibs despite two managerial changes during last season and Johnson has opted to keep the 34-year-old as part of his team

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McAllister was Johnson’s assistant at both Bristol City and Sunderland. The 44-year-old Scot played for Hibs’ rivals Hearts and scoring for Livingston when they defeated Hibs in the 2003 CIS Cup. The duo know each other from their playing days at Ashton Gate.

Lee Johnson and Jamie McAllister worked together at Sunderland.Lee Johnson and Jamie McAllister worked together at Sunderland.
Lee Johnson and Jamie McAllister worked together at Sunderland.

McAllister will share his assistant manager duties with Owen, a 41-year-old from Wales. Owen has been brought in from Polish Ekstrakala outfit Lech Poznan, where he was performing the role of technical director. Owen has worked in Scotland previously, first as a fitness and academy coach at Celtic under Martin O’Neill and Gordon Strachan before joining Rangers as performance director. He has also spent time with the Welsh national team and had a brief spell as manager of Lechia Gdansk between 2017 and 2018.

Hibs are yet to confirm a goalkeeping coach, however, after the departure of Jon Busch, with an appointment expected before the start of pre-season training.