Demi Mitchell knows from his time at Manchester United how motivating a presence Roy Keane could be for Hibs.
Although other candidates are seemingly being added to Hibs’ managerial hunt almost daily, Keane’s name remains an intriguing one.
There is no doubting the Old Trafford legend would be box-office.
But despite being an assistant with the Republic of Ireland, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest over the last decade, his last managerial role finished with Ipswich Town in 2011.
Chelsea, PSG, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich No.2 Paul Clement, former PSV and Derby County boss Phillip Cocu and one-time Rangers defender Henning Berg have all been linked as owner Ron Gordon prepares to ramp up the search for Shaun Maloney’s successor this week.
Mitchell admits the players are in the dark as to who will eventually become Hibs ’ 16th manager since 2000.
But after encountering Keane when coming through the ranks at Man United, he reckons the Irishman would bring plenty of passion and pedigree to the Leith side. Mitchell said: “I don’t know him personally or anything but it’s good to have big names linked with the club.
“You see him on TV and what he’s like and he’d definitely bring a passion to the club if he got the job – but we don’t know who’s coming in.
“When I was at United he came in to talk to the younger squads and youth teams a few times.
“It was good to have someone of that calibre coming in to speak to us and motivate us. It was a good experience.
“It was about how to make the best of our career mentally and physically, and motivating us to train hard
each day.
“We have had a lot of people coming in at all the clubs I’ve been at – here, United and Blackpool.
“And with having people coming in to speak to you, then it does motivate you.
“He’s a big motivator – but it’s down to the players to motivate themselves as well.
“We don’t know who’s coming in, we’re just focused on finishing the season as well as we can.”
With caretaker boss David Gray having tasked Hibs with winning all five post-split games, they fell short against Livingston.
The Easter Road side dominated possession and managed 18 shots at goal – but without finding the target even once.
And with Scott Pittman clinching the three points for Livi 11 minutes into the second half, Gray reckons the 90 minutes perfectly summed up the team’s miserable season.
However, one bright spot was the return of Mitchell after he spent 11 weeks on the sidelines with an ankle injury.
His time out coincided with Hibs’ failure to make the top six and their Scottish Cup semi-final defeat by Hearts, where the wing-back twice spent time on loan. It has been annoying for the Englishman but after they slipped below Livi into eighth in the table, Mitchell is determined to now help the Hibees finish positively as they prepare for their new boss.
Mitchell added: “It was good to be back out there, it’s been a long time – coming up to three months.
“So for me to get back out before the end of the season was a big plus.
“It was very frustrating to miss some big games. I was out for longer than I expected, I had hoped to be back sooner.
“But I’m back now and I just want to help the team and have a strong end to the season.
“We’ve got a young squad to show whoever comes in what we’re all about and make us play for places.
“When you play football you have to put your all into every game. You can’t think, ‘I should put more into this game because someone might be watching’.
“People are watching all the time so we just have to have a strong end to the season and build on it for next year.”
