Hibs new boy vows to be a real Graaf-ter in Euro quest

HIBS new boy Edwin de Graaf believes the Europa League experience he gained playing for Dutch side NAC Breda will prove invaluable to the Easter Road side.

The 30-year-old starred as his former club cruised past Armenian minnows Gandazasar and Polonia Warsaw, scoring 12 goals and conceding only one before hitting a brick wall in the shape of Spanish aces Villareal.

De Graaf took his tally for last season's Euro adventure to five as he scored at El Madrigal, his goal proving to be nothing more than a consolation as Breda crashed 9-2 on aggregate in the play-off round having suffered a crushing 6-1 defeat in Spain.

Nevertheless, Hibs boss John Hughes' first signing of the summer insisted the chance to do it all over again in a green-and-white shirt this season was part of the attraction of clinching a two-year deal in Edinburgh.

De Graaf will join his new team-mates for the start of pre-season training tomorrow with the first leg of their third qualifying round only a month away but already, he claimed, he's looking forward to tangling with one of Europe's big guns again.

He said: "We will see what happens, but it would be nice to play one of the big clubs, from Germany or Spain it does not matter.

"Villareal had a lot of big players, guys like Marcos Senna and Diego Godin, a big team."

De Graaf's experience, however, was an attraction for Hughes, the Hibs boss having made no secret of the fact he was looking not only for that quality but a physical presence in the middle of the park as he set about improving a squad which finished fourth in the SPL last season.

And, although De Graaf, who won five Dutch B caps as a 21-year-old, believes Scottish football is more "kick and rush" than the style played in his homeland, he has few doubts he'll be able to adapt to the rigours of the top flight in this country.

He said: "The coach told me he was looking for experience, for a box-to-box player on the right side, and he thought I am the man who can play there. Scottish football is more physical but I think I am the type of player who can play here, I am a guy who will run for the whole 90 minutes.

"I am really excited to be here. In Holland, I did my best in every game and I think more than that you cannot do. I feel Scottish football and me will be good for each other, I hope I will do well."

While De Graaf may have played alongside many of the current Dutch World Cup squad, players such as Dirk Kuyt and Maarten Stekelenburg, to name but two, he insisted he also remained a realist when it came to his chances of playing at full international level in Holland.

He said: "I was playing for a small club, RBC Roosendaal, and others were with the likes of Ajax and Feyenoord so I did not feel close to it especially when you look at great players such as Wesley Sneijder, Mark van Bommel, Rafael van der Vaart and Nigel de Jong in my position, midfield."

Although he'll be tasting football on foreign soil for the first time, De Graaf revealed he's no stranger to Scottish football, listing former Rangers striker Michael Mols among his friends. Having watched Rangers play both Hearts and Celtic as a guest of Mols during his time at Ibrox, it was to his old pal he turned for advice when Hughes made his approach having identified the former Feyenoord youth player as his No.1 target.

De Graaf said: "I played with Michael when we were younger and when I heard Hibs might want me I called him. He told me to get here if I could because, after Rangers and Celtic, Hibs were one of the biggest clubs in Scotland and to take that step.

"I also spoke to Dorus De Vries, the former Dunfermline goalkeeper who is now with Swansea, and other players in England."

De Graaf also, obviously, spoke to both Hughes and Hibs chairman Rod Petrie, but, he revealed, it was after watching the Easter Road side draw 6-6 at Fir Park in what became the highest scoring game in the history of the SPL which clinched the move.

He said: "I could also have gone to Germany, DC United in America or other clubs in Holland but then I saw that game at Motherwell, it was crazy, I'd never seen that before.

"But I had a good feeling about the game, I spoke to the manager and chairman who gave me a great feeling. They knew everything about me and then the only option was Hibs.

"This isn't my first opportunity to play abroad. I've always wanted to play in another country and a couple of years ago Barnsley and Bristol Rovers watched me but didn't make an offer.

"A lot of people in Holland were surprised I decided to come to Scotland but I am looking forward to it. I will bring a lot of passion to the team, I will work very hard, I'm a real team player."

And, in a declaration which is sure to delight the Hibs support, De Graaf also believes he can bring goals. He said: "Every year in Holland when I was fit all season I'd score six or eight goals. I hope I can bring that here."