Hughes knows Hibs are a fragile work in progress

Throughout this, his first season in charge of Hibernian, one of Hughes' main concerns has been how to manage expectations. There was a good example of that last month when, following a 5-1 win over Hamilton, Hibs closed to within two points of Celtic, who did not have a game until the following day.

Hughes strode in to the press room and declared he was "going public" with a bold ambition. "There is no point in shying away from it," he said, and those of us who would welcome a challenge to the Old Firm's duopoly edged forward on our seats, waiting for him to say his aim was to split Rangers and Celtic.

Then came the comedown. "I want third place and the European spot," he said.

Given Hibs have been in third place for much of the season, and in contention for it the rest of the time, this was a tame assertion which at that moment seemed to hint more at Hughes' lack of ambition than at any grand dream of success. In the light of the club's last two results, however – a 3-0 defeat by Rangers last Sunday and the 5-1 loss to St Johnstone on Wednesday, the first time they have lost consecutive league games this season – it becomes a lot more understandable.

Whatever he may say in private to his players, Hughes' public stance is that he lacks the depth of squad to challenge Rangers and Celtic over the course of the season. He has a wealth of attacking options, but little in the way of defensive or midfield cover to bring off the bench if things go wrong.

In other words, the rebuilding which has so far brought Liam Miller, Anthony Stokes and Alan Gow among others to the club is far from over. Hughes hopes to make more key signings in the summer, and rightly regards third place this time as a satisfactory base camp from which to plan an ascent next season.

He is well aware that Hibs' main failing over the last few years has been inconsistency. He has made them more competitive physically, and inspired them to dig in and claim draws from games they would otherwise have lost, but they are still a work in progress.

The fact is, although they are tougher than they were, Hibs remain fragile. Most notably, Merouane Zemmama is an entertainer who can look great when his back four and defensive midfielders are on the front foot, but he is the last man you would want beside you in the trenches.

What is more, that midfield is too reliant on Liam Miller. The Irishman is the most tenacious member of the squad and among the most gifted, but when he has an off day the whole team suffers.

Even when Miller is playing well, without Kevin McBride alongside him he often has too much to do. Assess McBride purely on what he does as an individual while on the ball and you may not be that impressed: he is the sort of player who can help build attacks, prompting team-mates to advance upfield, but rarely seizes hold of a game himself.

Look at him as he rides shotgun alongside Miller, however, and you begin to appreciate his true value. Miller can battle with the best of them, but when McBride is there to back him up he has the time in which to apply the more creative side of his game.

McBride was injured against Rangers, missed out on the trip to Perth, and may not make it today either. In those circumstances, Hughes would not be too upset with a draw this afternoon.

With United visiting Celtic, that one point could even be enough to stretch Hibs' lead in third and take the club closer to achieving their manager's stated goal.