Lee Johnson has paid the price for what Hibs bosses call a ‘disappointing start to the season’.
The 42-year-old manager (pictured against FC Luzern) was sacked after being in charge for 15 months and the axe fell only hours after the Easter Road club were edged 3-2 by Livingston in front of 14,932 fans.
The West Lothian side had previously played 827 minutes of league football away from their Tony Macaroni Stadium without finding the net and the chop came only days after the 5-0 humbling by Aston Villa at Easter Road in the UEFA Europa Conference League play-off.
Hibs were also been beaten 3-2 by St Mirren at Easter Road on Matchday One and lost 2-1 at Motherwell in the second game of the cinch Premiership.
Their poor record so far this season is played nine and lost five, winning three and drawing the other.
They also lost 2-1 at Euro minnows Inter d’Escales in Andora but bounced back to win 6-1 in the return at Easter Road and give fans real hope that the club was on the up.
They then beat Swizz club FC Luzern in the next round on a 5-3 aggregate before edging Raith Rovers 2-1 in Edinburgh to reach the quarter-final of the Scottish League before facing Villa and Livingston.
Newmarket-born Johnson, who played for Brighton and Hove Albion, Yeovil Town, Bristol City, Derby County, Chesterfield, Kilmarnock and Hearts, said post-match on Saturday that he was building a new team and looking for time to turn things around.
Former club captain David Gray, aged 35, who made 126 appearances for the club between 2014 and 2021, and scored the winning goal in the 2016 Scottish Cup Final win over Rangers, will take charge of the first team for the immediate future.
Hibs next fixture is the UEFA Europa Conference League return at Villa Park on Thursday (20.00) and Gray will be supported by Stuart Garden.
Confirmation of the switch came in a short statement from Hibs posted on the club’s website on Sunday afternoon and the club say no further comment will be made at this time.
Ben Kensell, Hibs’ chief executive, said: “The club has taken the tough decision to relieve Lee Johnson of his duties following a disappointing start to the domestic campaign.
“We wish Lee and his coaching staff all the best for the future and thank them for their efforts.”
Johnson, a former manager at Oldham, Barnsley, Bristol City and Sunderland, took over from Shaun Maloney in May 2022 and he guided them to fifth place last term after a late surge.
Now Hibs step up their bid for a new boss and the national press and broadcast media have already placed former manager Neil Lennon in the frame along with Stephen Robinson. Time will tell.
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