Shaun Maloney pinpoints where he will strengthen at Hibs in wake of Hearts defeat

Hibs manager Shaun Maloney says he knows that his team needs reinforced in the final third and requires more experienced heads.

The Edinburgh club went down 2-1 to their capital rivals Hearts in the Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden, just seven days after the Jambos defeated them at Tynecastle to condemn Maloney’s men to bottom-six football in the cinch Premiership.

Maloney admits the Hibs far from where he wants them to be and has already mapped out what type of player he wants to bring in.

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When asked what Hibs are missing right now, Maloney responded: “There is lots of very good play in the final third. But we have to be more efficient and more clinical.

Hibs manager Shaun Maloney.Hibs manager Shaun Maloney.
Hibs manager Shaun Maloney.

“We have to be stronger. That is the big difference.

“Look at Hearts in that area – they’ve got [Liam] Boyce and [Barrie] McKay who are good players at this level and have been down south. You know what you are getting from them.

“My job and the club’s job is to make sure that come the summer we are just as strong and we don’t feel like this again.”

Pressed if there is a lack of experience at Easter Road, Maloney added: “That could be the case. The model of the club is that you always want to develop young players through the academy or ones we bring in.

“But I’ve said before that it’s not an age thing for me. It’s what you bring. To me, it doesn’t matter whether you are 17 or 37. It’s what you bring to the team at that precise omens.”

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