Have no Fear

While as disappointed as anyone at being forced to settle for a 0-0 draw with UEFA Cup rivals Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, the French ace firmly believes Tony Mowbray's side are still in with a shout of making the lucrative group stage of the competition.

And Beuzelin was backed by Mowbray, who claimed the pressure was now on Dnipro, who'll feel they are now favourites to progress.

Stand-in skipper Beuzelin said: "Of course we are disappointed because we hit the post twice and to be going to the Ukraine 2-0 up would have given us a big, big chance of going through.

"The important thing is we didn't lose a goal at home. We kept the chance to win the tie alive and we believe we can go and do that.

"We know if we score in Dnipro then they will have to score two which will make it difficult for them and we have the players who can do exactly that.

"We've gone to Glasgow and scored three against Celtic and three against Rangers so I think everyone is confident that we can go to the Ukraine and get goals, especially with someone like Ivan Sproule, who is so dangerous."

Having scored four goals in his previous two games, Sproule again came off the bench only to be denied by the woodwork, as was Scott Brown earlier in the match, evidence, Beuzelin believes, that Hibs will carry a major threat when they travel in a fortnight's time.

He said: "The UEFA Cup is a fantastic stage, last night was my first experience of it and it was a tremendous atmosphere.

"I hope we can qualify for the group stage because it isn't just important in financial terms but for the players to get more experience of playing at such a level."

Last night's match marked the 50th anniversary of Hibs becoming the first British team to play in the European Cup, Easter Road swathed in a 1121-foot banner which ran around the ground carrying the names of all 38 opponents over those years.

And Beuzelin admitted seeing those names made him and his team-mates realise just how rich the club's history was.

He said: "The atmosphere inside the ground was fantastic, it made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. I know I'll be handing the captain's armband back to Gary Caldwell now he is fit again but to lead the team out for this match was something special.

"To look around and see names of clubs like Juventus, Valencia, Liverpool, Porto and Napoli was incredible, it makes you want to play more games like this, to play against the very best teams in Europe.

"Dnipro are a very good side, very good technically but I believe we can cause them further problems in the Ukraine".

While Mowbray had described his side as underdogs, today the Hibs boss insisted the first-round tie was "still in the balance."

He said: "They maybe think they have got a good result but I think it was a decent result for us as well.

"Obviously, we'd have liked the two which hit the post to have gone in but it puts a bit more pressure on Dnipro.

"They are a good side but having seen them at home I still think they are more suited to playing away with the players they have, which is a positive for us.

"We'll give it our very best shot and I think we have every reason to be optimistic."