Hibs' Raphael Sallinger Prepares for Conference League Redemption

Raphael Sallinger sat among the away support at Tynecastle on Tuesday night and watched Hearts’ European hopes crumble. A 2-0 home defeat to Sturm Graz, 6-0 on aggregate, the heaviest two-legged loss in the club’s history.

He enjoyed it. Of course he did. He’s a Hibs goalkeeper.

But as the dust settled on a bruising night for Edinburgh’s maroon half, one thought cut through the schadenfreude: that cannot be us on Thursday.

From Tynecastle spectator to Easter Road last line

Sallinger had a good reason to be there beyond rivalry.

“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 doesn’t get over to Scotland often. When Sturm drew Hearts, the trip wrote itself.

“Sturm are a very good team,” he said. There were chats at home when the draw came out, but only “small details, nothing special”. No great tactical summit, no espionage mission. Just a family visit that happened to end in a record European hammering for Hearts.

Now the roles flip. On Thursday night at Easter Road, she will be in the stands for him, and the stakes are suddenly personal. Hibs trail 2-0 to Kosovan side Malisheva in their Conference League qualifier. Another Scottish side on the brink of embarrassment. Another capital club staring at an early exit.

Sallinger is determined that’s where the comparison ends.

A bruising first leg, a blunt message

The first leg in Kosovo stung. Hibs were flat, open, and punished. Sallinger doesn’t hide from it.

“We as a group spoke about a lot of things which went wrong in that game,” he admitted. There was no attempt to dress it up. “There are clearly things we can improve on, but we've worked very well this week.”

The mood at East Mains has reflected that. Honest conversations, training sessions with an edge, and a goalkeeper who knows this is the kind of week that defines a dressing room.

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

It’s not about the name of the opponent now. Not about the size of the club or the reputation of the league. Hibs have already seen what happens when you underestimate a side with less pedigree and more bite.

No excuses left

Sallinger is clear: the margin for error has gone.

“It doesn't matter which side we're playing against. The main target is getting through to the third round of the Conference League,” he said. That is the only lens through which Thursday can be viewed. Progress or failure.

“We have to make sure we win tomorrow,” he added. No talk of “trying our best”, no soft landing. Just a demand.

Hibs cannot afford to drift through another European tie, not with Hearts’ collapse still echoing across the city. What happened at Tynecastle is a warning as much as a rivalry highlight reel.

“We don't want to look back too much on the last game,” Sallinger said. “All we can do is look forward and try to change things around.”

He saw one Edinburgh club humbled in Europe this week. Now he steps onto the pitch to make sure there isn’t a second.