402 appearances across 17 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
Marsa will keep picking him until June and will get nothing for him after it. Fran Obiagwu has pre-agreed a move to Hibernians, and the only people who lose in that arrangement are the ones who let the contract run down.
Bjorn Kristensen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Cleiton Robozão provided it, and the 9.08 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
401 appearances across 17 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.
Two goals and a mark of 8.32 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
At 33 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 7.90 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Mouad El Fanis has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout1 Nov 2027
The view from the dugout
“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Gilbert Farrugia, on a 4‑0 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
Mailson Lima and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ali Diakité was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Successful dribbles: 17. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Gilbert Farrugia kept it short after the 1‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Silas Alfred will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Bjorn Kristensen is on it.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hibernians they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Siyabonga Ngcobo has written the date down.
Successful dribbles: 26. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
14 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hibernians lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 19 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Mouad El Fanis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Hamrun Spartans left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The dugout27 Sep 2027
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑1 Gilbert Farrugia left the room before anybody could ask which.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
21 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hibernians lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 26 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 8.05 at 34, and nobody on the pitch was better.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
28 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hibernians lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 33 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hibernians they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
35 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hibernians lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Jurgen Degabriele had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
16 seasons and 287 appearances, all of them here. Careers like this are not designed; they happen to a certain kind of man at a certain kind of club, and this town has one.
The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. Floriana moved on, Miullen reports back to Hibernians, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.
Boardroom6 Sep 2027
Hibernians close the window on a squad of their own making
13 in and 6 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Hibernians has been clear about where Jurgen Degabriele stands, which is more than many ever get.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hibernians, and it is not being withdrawn.
Add another name to the list: Fgura United have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Jamie Wähling. The answer from Hibernians has not changed — yet.
Ryder Matos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Boardroom30 Aug 2027
6 academy players handed senior numbers at Hibernians
The morning the pathway stops being a brochure and becomes a team sheet. Most of them will not be here in three years; all of them have already done the hard part, which was getting to today.
He is 23 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Floriana have accepted the money. What Hibernians do not yet have is the man, and between here and the photograph is a conversation about wages that both sides are dreading.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Silas Alfred will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Ryder Matos was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
This is not rotation. Herick has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise.
Squad23 Aug 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kurt Shaw is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Cleiton Robozão is on it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Cleiton Robozão signs something — a contract at Hibernians or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Floriana waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Hibernians had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Floriana, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Dexter Xuereb will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Add another name to the list: Zebbug Rangers have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Jurgen Degabriele. The answer from Hibernians has not changed — yet.
Bjorn Kristensen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Hibernians, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Add another name to the list: Zebbug Rangers have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Jamie Wähling. The answer from Hibernians has not changed — yet.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ryder Matos signs something — a contract at Hibernians or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Hibernians people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
Add another name to the list: Floriana have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Miullen. The answer from Hibernians has not changed — yet.
Mouad El Fanis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Kurt Shaw falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Matteo Cardinali is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Mouad El Fanis trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Silas Alfred will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
This is not rotation. Herick has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise.
Squad26 Jul 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Floriana have accepted the money. What Hibernians do not yet have is the man, and between here and the photograph is a conversation about wages that both sides are dreading.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Everything was agreed until it was not, and Jurgen Degabriele reports back to Hibernians with a summer to forget. Neither club is saying who walked away from the table.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kurt Shaw is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
In brief
The dugoutMouad El Fanis has become a man the manager trusts
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Fgura United waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Ryder Matos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Add another name to the list: Gudja United have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Jurgen Degabriele. The answer from Hibernians has not changed — yet.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
5 arrivals, an average age nobody would call a squad, and a set of parents being shown around a building their sons will spend more time in than at home. The scouting has already happened; today is only the paperwork.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Joseph Mbong is on it.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Floriana keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
The offer from Gudja United for Jurgen Degabriele was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hibernians they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The name of Jamie Wähling has come up in conversations Hibernians were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Kurt Shaw was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Hibernians and Floriana have settled on $1.1M. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Kurt Shaw falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Zebbug Rangers waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hibernians, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ryder Matos signs something — a contract at Hibernians or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Vittoriosa Stars waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Mailson Lima and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Hibernians will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Matthieu Kumbi Mabanza and Hibernians agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Hibernians, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Nobody writes a headline about a tutor. Nobody has to be told, either, what happens to a signing who spends two years being the man nobody can talk to at lunch.
A manager forgives a bad Saturday far more readily than a bad Tuesday, because one of them he can explain and the other one he chose. The reports this week have not been good.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Silas Alfred will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The words a physio says slowly. 18 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
25 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Hibernians lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The kind of year that ends with a name being read out in a hall. Hibernians had the benefit of it every week and now have the problem of everybody else knowing.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Jamie Wähling trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
32 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hibernians lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hibernians they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Mouad El Fanis trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Bjorn Kristensen is on it.
“Judge me on him.” Managers do not say that kind of thing by accident — it moves the pressure from Herick’s shoulders onto his own, and both of them know it.
39 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Hibernians lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Silas Alfred will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
5 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Cleiton Robozão trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Hibernians have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hibernians, and it is not being withdrawn.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
Ryder Matos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
This is not rotation. Herick has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“50 caps was 50 more than the boy who started ever expected.” At 34 he has stepped away from the national side and has not stepped away from Hibernians.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Cleiton Robozão is on it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Hibernians, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Position 3, 39 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Bjorn Kristensen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Everybody at Hibernians saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 35 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Nadson trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Mailson Lima signs something — a contract at Hibernians or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hibernians they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Ebuka Nneji was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
4 call-ups is a compliment to the squad and a headache for the man running it. He will get them back in a fortnight, tired, in various states of repair.
Nobody at Hibernians will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Hibernians, and both men came out saying it was fine.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
6 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
1 kept out in the shoot-out, and a stadium that will still be describing them in twenty years. A goalkeeper only needs one of these to be remembered forever.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Mouad El Fanis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The board have answered with money instead of encouragement, which is the only answer a manager ever wants. Spending it well is now entirely his problem.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Dexter Xuereb will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Adam Magri Overend was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Bjorn Kristensen is on it.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Hibernians they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Mouad El Fanis is on it.
The last league game has been played and the table has stopped moving: 39 points. The summer begins on Monday, and so does the argument about what it all meant.
Ryder Matos was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad15 Feb 2027
A last season at home is what Mailson Lima is after
It is sentimental, it is completely genuine, and it is the beginning of a departure nobody has announced. The club can be gracious about it or it can pretend not to have heard.
At 23 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
A performance of 8.29 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Hibernians people have started saying his name in the past tense.
393 appearances across 16 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Siyabonga Ngcobo has, at Hibernians, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Every long career reaches the week the player starts thinking about the last one. He would like it to be at the club that first put him on a pitch, and Hibernians now know that too.
Marked 8.15 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Miullen had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Dexter Xuereb will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Hibernians the goodbyes have quietly begun.
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Hibernians may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Hibernians close the window on a squad of their own making
3 in and 0 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
The chase for Jesús Yépez ended with $80.0K changing hands and Melita out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hibernians, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
The dugout25 Jan 2027
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Gilbert Farrugia left the room before anybody could ask which.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager makes an example of Ebuka Nneji
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Hibernians have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hibernians, and it is not being withdrawn.
Everything was agreed until it was not, and Silas Alfred reports back to Hibernians with a summer to forget. Neither club is saying who walked away from the table.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 24 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Mailson Lima and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Hibernians have made the call to Sliema Wanderers. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 31 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
The kind of year that ends with a name being read out in a hall. Hibernians had the benefit of it every week and now have the problem of everybody else knowing.
1 for Ali Diakité, marked 7.78, and a centre-half's name in the part of the report he normally only reaches by mistake. He will not be allowed to forget it in the dressing room for a month.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hibernians will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 2‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 45 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
It is a specific kind of quiet, a ground watching a winning position dissolve. Naxxar Lions kept coming because nothing stopped them, and Hibernians will be asked about the last half hour all week.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Hibernians can pretend not to have heard.
The fixture the rest of the division is looking forward to more than either of the sides in it. Both know a win changes the season and a defeat does not end it, which is what makes it hard to play.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
He is 22 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Mouad El Fanis. 1‑0 against Valletta, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hibernians will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Bjorn Kristensen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Match5 Dec 2026
Another one collected away from home
3 on the bounce on the road for Hibernians. The coaches leave early, arrive at unlovely grounds in the dark, and keep coming home with three points.
A 1‑0 win over Tarxien Rainbows, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Valletta next, and the two sides the division is watching meet each other. Whoever wins will be told nothing is decided in the same breath as being congratulated.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
4 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
A 2‑0 win over Zabbar St. Patrick, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings30 Nov 2026
Mouad El Fanis was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.17. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Half the programme played, position 5, 20 on the board. Doubling it is the sum every supporter has done and the only one nobody at the club will do out loud.
In brief
BoardroomWages eat 98% of everything Hibernians earn
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Two goals and a mark of 8.29 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 8.11 at 33, and nobody on the pitch was better.
3 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Hibernians will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Hibernians can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 86 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
7.56, 1 on the scoresheet, and the specific comedy of a back-four player celebrating like somebody who does this every week. He does not, and that is exactly why the ground reacted the way it did.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nadson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Marked 8.05 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
The goal that put Birkirkara ahead was still being replayed on the concourse when Hibernians equalised, 2 minutes later. Leads are only worth what you do with them.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
“I watch every Hibernians game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Mtarfa runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
In brief
The dugoutMouad El Fanis asks for a word with the manager
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Level with 91 minutes on the clock, after an afternoon Hibernians had all but put away. Mosta will call it a point earned; the home dressing room will call it two given away, and both of them are right.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dexter Xuereb was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Gilbert Farrugia chose the glass-half-full version of 2‑2; the supporters left with the other one.
In brief
The dugoutSilas Alfred dropped after a run of poor form
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 107 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Bjorn Kristensen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nadson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Gilbert Farrugia after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
13 times he got in the way of something. Centre-halves get written about when they make mistakes and ignored when they do not, so an afternoon like this needs saying out loud: he is the reason the scoreline reads as it does.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 114 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dexter Xuereb was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Marsaxlokk in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Mailson Lima signs something — a contract at Hibernians or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
11 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 2‑3 Gilbert Farrugia left the room before anybody could ask which.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
The manager has not finished forgetting Matteo Cardinali's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 128 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Nadson has, at Hibernians, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Hibernians know it.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 135 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Miullen provided it, and the 9.20 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Ryder Matos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
He is 22 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dexter Xuereb is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
He is 19, and nobody at Hibernians signed him for this season. Deals like this are judged in four years, by people who may not still be in the building.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
There were 8 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
A brace, and Ryder Matos takes the afternoon — 8.56
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Ryder Matos provided it, and the 8.56 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Ryder Matos. 2‑0 against Valletta, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
17 defensive actions and a clean sheet at the end of them. A defender's afternoon can only be told by what did not happen, which is why nobody makes a highlights package out of one and every manager in the division would take it.
Squad14 Sep 2026
Dexter Xuereb falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Gilbert Farrugia kept it short after the 2‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 149 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 4 arrived, 2 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Hibernians asked and Floriana said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Bjorn Kristensen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad7 Sep 2026
8 new faces, and Hibernians are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dexter Xuereb is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Hibernians, and it is not being withdrawn.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Hibernians will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Mtarfa waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Hibernians is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 8.06 at 33, and nobody on the pitch was better.
A defender on the scoresheet, which happens rarely enough that everybody in the ground remembers who took the corner. 1 for him, and a mark of 7.74 for the rest of it.
Boardroom31 Aug 2026
2 academy players handed senior numbers at Hibernians
The morning the pathway stops being a brochure and becomes a team sheet. Most of them will not be here in three years; all of them have already done the hard part, which was getting to today.
A 3‑1 win over Tarxien Rainbows, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The deal with Tranmere Rovers is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Hibernians asked and Barrow AFC said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Mouad El Fanis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Isaiah Chukunyere had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Kwara United keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Hibernians asked and Birkirkara said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nathan Agius is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Hibernians would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
The deal with Kwara United is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Mailson Lima was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Chesterfield have kept their man, and Hibernians go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The name of Isaiah Chukunyere has come up in conversations Hibernians were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
Squad10 Aug 2026
7 new faces, and Hibernians are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Words at Hibernians training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dexter Xuereb is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Kevin Piedrahita is 35 and has run out of things to prove. What he has left is where to stand, when to slow it down and what to say at half-time, and none of that is on a fitness chart.
In brief
The dugoutJoseph Mbong asks for a word with the manager
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Hibernians are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Hibernians this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.