Hibs' European Challenge: Raphael Sallinger Prepares for Redemption

Raphael Sallinger sat high in the Tynecastle stand on Tuesday night and watched Hearts’ European hopes collapse. Two goals to Sturm Graz on the night, six without reply on aggregate, and a brutal statistic etched into the record books as Hearts’ worst-ever two-legged defeat in Europe.

He didn’t hide his enjoyment. How could a Hibs goalkeeper not savour a rival’s misery? But as the dust settled on Hearts’ humiliation, the view from the away end quickly turned into a warning.

What happened to them cannot happen to us.

From Tynecastle spectator to Easter Road last line

Sallinger was there for more than just schadenfreude. There was a personal pull too.

“My missus actually works for Sturm Graz as a nutritionist so it was obviously clear for me to go and watch her at Tynecastle,” the Austrian explained. “She's not over in Scotland very often. She'll be at our game tomorrow as well to support me.”

So on one side of Edinburgh, he watched his partner’s club ruthlessly dismantle Hearts. On the other, just 48 hours later, he will stand in goal at Easter Road trying to stop Hibs becoming the next Scottish side to be embarrassed on the continent.

Because while Hearts were being taken apart by a Champions League side, Hibs were already nursing their own wound. A 2-0 first-leg defeat away to Malisheva, a club widely tagged as “minnows” from Kosovo, has left them staring at an early exit from the Conference League unless they can summon a response on Thursday night.

The contrast is sharp. Sturm Graz, a seasoned European outfit, looked every inch the part at Tynecastle. Sallinger knows them well.

“Sturm are a very good team,” he said. “Of course there were a few conversations when we knew they were playing Hearts, but only about small details, nothing special. I'm happy for them that they went through.”

Happy for them, yes. But the lesson is obvious. Quality, conviction, and a ruthless edge decide these ties. Hibs showed none of that in Kosovo. They need all of it in Leith.

“These are the moments…”

The first leg still stings. Sallinger doesn’t pretend otherwise.

“We as a group spoke about a lot of things which went wrong in that game,” he admitted. “There are clearly things we can improve on, but we've worked very well this week.”

That defeat has hung over the training ground. Players know what losing to a side with Malisheva’s profile would look like in the cold light of day. It’s not just about going out; it’s about who you go out to.

Yet Sallinger leans into the challenge rather than shrinking from it.

“These are the moments where you can see what character is in this team and we will show that character tomorrow,” he said.

It’s a goalkeeper’s mindset: no escape, no hiding place, no one else to blame. One mistake can define a night, one big save can flip it. Hibs, as a group, now stand in that same unforgiving spotlight.

No excuses, no safety net

There is no talk of damage limitation, no attempt to dress up the scale of the task. Hibs trail 2-0. They must win. They must score at least twice. Anything less, and their European campaign ends before it ever really begins.

“It doesn't matter which side we're playing against,” Sallinger insisted. “The main target is getting through to the third round of the Conference League.

“We have to make sure we win tomorrow. We don't want to look back too much on the last game. All we can do is look forward and try to change things around.”

That’s the crux of it. The name Malisheva won’t impress anyone if Hibs turn this around. It will just read as a professional job done under pressure. Fail, and it becomes a scar on the season, a result that gets mentioned every time Europe comes up.

Sallinger has already seen one Edinburgh club humbled on their own patch this week. Now he steps out at Easter Road determined that, this time, the story is very different.