The Edinburgh Reporter April 2024

23

Maolida is a

happy Hibee

VAR gets thumbs up

Hertha Berlin loanee excels at Easter Road

By CALLUM NAPIER

MYZIANE MAOLIDA has enjoyed a successful

start to his Hibs career since joining on loan in

January.

After finding himself out of favour at

German side Hertha Berlin, the 25-year-old

has flourished in Scotland, scoring six goals in

twelve games, and looking like a player Hibs

will do well to keep beyond the impending

summer.

At Hertha, Maolida was banished to the B

side, with their coach, Pal Dardai, claiming he

didn’t train hard enough.

With his career requiring a swift turnaround,

Nick Montgomery swooped in and offered the

forward the chance of redemption at Easter

Road.

A chance that Maolida has grabbed with

both hands and the people closest to him have

noticed a vast difference.

He said: “I spoke with my family and my

friends. They said you are enjoying your

football; you are happier. Also, your body

language is much better.

“The people (in Scotland) are very

welcoming, I like the city, and the fans.”

Perhaps, the “bad trainer” tag that Maolida

was tarred with by his former coach isn’t

accurate at all, certain players just need the

right environment and a manager who trusts

them to deliver, which the forward certainly

has.

Maolida is currently observing Ramadan,

where those taking part don’t eat or drink

whilst the sun is up, for professional football

players - who cover vast distances weekly – this

may prove challenging.

Not for the 25-year-old, he said: “I have done

it for a long time...I did it already in Lyon, so it

will not be difficult for me to make Ramadan,

because it’s usual for me.

“You just have to wake up early in the

morning to eat, and to be good for the day

until the sun goes out.”

For Maolida, breakfast is typically at four

o’clock in the morning, he then fasts until

around six in the evening but remains at the

peak of his powers.

He said: “Every time I do Ramadan, I feel

very good. For me it’s not difficult, the most

difficult it just not to drink.”

It would be difficult to disagree with him,

Maolida scored in the recent 3-0 victory over

Livingston whilst fasting and looked as quality

as ever as Hibs put the game to bed within half

an hour.

His recent form meant he retained his place

in the Comoros national side for games against

Uganda and Angola.

Following that, he will return to Hibs for the

crucial closing stages of both the season and

potentially his stint with the club. No doubt

Nick Montgomery will be interested in

retaining his services, but a player who has

accumulated transfer fees of 14 million euros

in his career already will attract interest from

all over.

By NIGEL DUNCAN

STEVEN NAISMITH’S view on

VAR has not changed. He believes it

will ultimately help the game.

Hearts’ head coach said: “There

were always going to be teething

problems at the start of it.

“There have been instances which

have affected us which, at first hand,

are wrong decisions. For me, that is

not down to VAR, it is down to the

wrong decision makers at the time.

“It (VAR) is new. There is an

element of time and mistakes will be

made.” 

What has not helped, he argued,

is that there has been “a lot of noise

on the outside, soundbites, if you

like, that stoke the fire” that have

been unjust for the VAR

operators and officials.

But the former Scottish

international striker said: “Every club

knows the process, every club

knows what the process is for every

decision, but it does not suit

everybody and it can deflect away

from what has maybe been a bad

performance or a bad result.”

Naismith does not believe

Scottish Football should go back to

where we were a few years ago and

said: “The stats indicate that there

are more decisions right than wrong.

“I want us to get the best

decision, the right decision. It

(VAR) has a place in the game it is

about being more consistent and

getting better decisions. That does

take time. There have been some

decisions that have been wrong, and

we are one of the teams which have

been impacted.”

Cadden

returns

By CALLUM NAPIER

AFTER A LENGTHY nine-month

stint on the sidelines, right-back

Chris Cadden has made his return

to the Hibs first team.

The 27-year-old suffered a

ruptured Achilles tendon on the

final day of last season against

Hearts at Tynecastle, and as a

result, had to go through a lengthy

rehabilitation process.

Ever the professional, Cadden

worked relentlessly off the pitch

and finally returned in the Scottish

Cup tie away to Inverness in

February.

An occasional cameo off the

bench followed that, including a

standing ovation from the home

crowd in his first game back at

Easter Road against Ross County.

Then, after an injury to Lewis

Miller, head coach Nick

Montgomery handed Cadden his

first start since his return in one of

Hibs’ biggest games of the season,

the quarter-final with Rangers.

Hibs lost the game 2-0 after

being reduced to nine men, and

Cadden played the duration of the

action-packed 90 minutes, looking

back to his best with his trademark

bombing runs down the right flank.

Cadden said: “For me personally,

it was great to be back out there.

It’s been a long, long journey, just

over nine months.

Despite the occasional substitute

appearance, the former Scotland

international always had his return

to the starting eleven as a target he

said: “I didn’t think it would go that

long.

“But no, it was great. The first

start was the milestone. I think that

was the milestone I thought I

would be truly back.

“I know I came on a couple of

times, but I always say my first start

is the real one, that I’ll be back. It

didn’t end the way I wanted it to.

But no, personally it was good to

get back out there.

“I’ve just been working really

hard, so hopefully the hard work

pays off. It was a pretty hectic

game to get thrown into as well.

Aye, it was madness to be honest,

it was madness.”

A concerning moment during

the game was fan favourite, Martin

Boyle, getting stretchered off the

pitch after a nasty clash with

Rangers defender John Souttar.

Boyle was rushed to hospital and

after undergoing tests was

released the next day, suffering

from a concussion.

The Australian international was

unable to play until he displayed at

least six days of concussion-free

symptoms.

Hibs will hope that Cadden and

Boyle can reconcile their right-

wing relationship soon enough, as

they approach three crucial games

ahead of the Scottish Premiership

split.

Myziane Maolida

Hibernian FC

Photo Ian Jacobs

Photo HOMFC