Hibs boss: Focus is on Europe, not Sol Bamba

Bamba's refusal to team up with Hughes' squad in Holland has dominated the last couple of days, a time when the entire focus of everyone at Easter Road should be concentrated on next Thursday's Euro clash with either Videoton or Mirabor. But while claim and counter-claim may be debated at length by the club's supporters and elsewhere, Hughes vowed not to let the squabble deflect him as he puts the finishing touches to his squad's preparations for the first leg of their third qualifying round tie.

Although Bamba has hit back, claiming he'd never agreed to report back on Monday - conveniently ignoring the fact he's a club employee and, like the rest of us, obliged to pay attention to the paymaster's bidding - Hughes today refused to be drawn into a war of words with his wayward star.

"I'm not going to comment," was Hughes' response to the 25-year-old's outburst. "When he comes back I will speak to him face-to-face, not through the newspapers."

Nevertheless, the whole affair throws into question Bamba's future in Edinburgh as he enters the last year of his contract while some may question his motive in refusing to return as the club claim he was requested to do after granting him extra time off following his involvement with the Ivory Coast at the World Cup in South Africa.

Although Hughes insisted he'd be "out of order" to speculate on Bamba's intentions, the query uppermost in many minds will undoubtedly be whether he is trying to engineer a move from Hibs.

Whatever it may be, there's little doubt it's an unsavoury episode, one which threatens to overshadow the days leading up to a moment Hibs supporters have been looking forward to all summer.

For his part, Hughes is adamant he won't be sidetracked, no need to utter the maxim that no one player is bigger than the club and, at this particular moment in time, it's Hibs' immediate future which is of the greater concern to him, the manager nurturing the dream that his side can make it to the lucrative group stages of the competition.

Bamba was undoubtedly an integral part of his plans, his athleticism, physical presence and power making him an influential figure in central defence. Today, however, the manager's preparations continue with Bamba's name not featuring in the script given that, despite the former Dunfermline star's claims to have tried to speak to both Hughes and chairman Rod Petrie, there has, according to the manager, still not been any contact.

As such, Hughes has to explore every option, the third of Hibs' four matches in the Netherlands seeing him field what was very much an experimental side against Ado Den Haag, 18-year-old David Stephens partnering Paul Hanlon, barely two years his senior, in central defence, a pairing which is hardly likely to take to the field in a week's time.

Unsurprisingly, given many of Hibs' senior players started on the bench, it was a less than assured performance from Hibs despite enjoying the dream start as Michael Hart stooped low to nod home the rebound after a free-kick from Derek Riordan, skipper for the night, hit the bar in the first minute.

Ado, though, took just ten minutes to equalise, Danny Buijs finding himself all alone to turn home Frantisek Kubik's low cross, the slack marking on that occasion repeated 17 minutes into the second half as Lex Immers nodded home what proved to be the winner.

The Dutch outfit could easily have been further ahead before the interval, although Anthony Stokes passed up the chance to give Hibs an unlikely lead on the stroke of half-time.

For the second time in six days, Hughes was left to concede Hibs had come off second best as they had in going down 3-0 to Heracles in their opening game. He said: "We got a bit of a runaround, they kept the ball better than us - it was another football lesson.

"There's a bit of frustration but no matter what age you are, just starting off in the game or getting on a bit, you have to be inspired to try to get yourself to that standard."

This was, of course, Hibs' third match in just six days, all of which have been played in temperatures touching 30C but Hughes refused to make any excuses, pointing out that the Dutch sides his team had faced were also embroiled in pre-season programmes and were also likely to be enduring the daily double training sessions he's been putting his players through.

"There are no excuses," he said, "We were beaten by the better team, we were outplayed." Hibs have just one more match before they play in Europe, Saturday's final game in Holland against Vitesse Arnhem, but Hughes revealed he's likely to keep something up his sleeve just in case the winners of tonight's match in Slovenia - which will be watched by his assistant Brian Rice - are in attendance.

He said: "I am getting towards my team. Without giving too much away, everyone has had a shot, we've been trying things and I am probably a game away from knowing the system that suits us best.

"Everything we have done has been meticulously planned with an eye to next week."The team on Saturday will probably tell you 75 per cent, but we might just hide part of it if we know they (either Videoton or Maribor] are coming."

Among the questions to be answered between now and next Thursday will be which of his three goalkeepers Hughes will choose, Graeme Smith, Graham Stack and, last night, Mark Brown, having all enjoyed 90 minutes.

He said: "It's great to have and it's probably something most other clubs would like, three quality goalkeepers. "We've rotated them, they've each had a game and when it starts for real you will get your answer."

Hughes himself will also undoubtedly be looking for answers when Bamba finally shows his face - the French-born star claiming he'll be in Edinburgh this weekend.

What every Hibs fan would give to be a fly on the wall for that one.

Hibs: Brown; Hart (Wotherspoon 56), Stephens (Hogg 65), Hanlon, Stevenson (Murray 65); Thicot; McBride, Currie (De Graaf 56); Galbraith (Miller 56), Stokes, Riordan (Nish 65). Subs not used: Smith, Rankin.