David Gray says that it’s a brilliant time to be a Hibs fans ahead of tomorrow’s UEFA Conference League Play-Off tie against Legia Warsaw.
Hibs beat FK Partizan to progress to this stage of the competition, and they now face the Polish Cup winners knowing they are just one round away from the League Phase.
Hibs will welcome Legia to Easter Road on Thursday evening before travelling back to mainland Europe next week for the second leg.
When speaking to the press, Gray admitted how exciting he is for the two legs and explained the different challenges of playing at home first.
“It’s a brilliant tie to look forward to, and the final obstacle to complete one of our targets from the start of the season, to get into the group stage.
“It’ll be another sell-out at Easter Road and everyone should be looking forward to the game.
“It’s slightly different for us because we were away in the first leg twice during our European campaign, but I don’t think it changes much. Clearly, though, you’d want to take a lead to the away game.
“No matter what happens in the first leg, there will still be a lot of football to be played in the tie.
“You want to start every game as well as you can to get the crowd right behind you, which we know they will be. They’ve been the 12th man for us in the last two rounds at Easter Road.
“I think it’s a brilliant time to be a Hibs fan, to be a Hibs player, and everyone should be looking forward to the game. We’re really focused on a brilliant tie.”
Legia Warsaw entered the UEFA Conference League after being beaten by AEK Larnaca over two legs in the UEFA Europa League third qualifying round.
They currently sit fifth in the Polish top-flight and have a strong history of competing in European competition. Gray is more than aware of how tough the next two games will be.
“They’re a very good side. They got to the Quarter-Finals of this competition last year, which shows the level of opposition we will be playing against.
“We have shown already that we’re a very good team ourselves. We need to play to those levels again, and I believe we can get through the tie, if we play to those levels. I need the players to believe in that.
“They have good players, they have threats, they’re aggressive with and without the ball. It’s a slightly different mindset for our players being at home first, but there’s a lot of football to be played, and everyone’s looking forward to it.”
