New Hibernian manager Marink Reedijk has discussed why Felix Passlack has been wearing the armband for his Hibs team despite Martin Boyle still being present.
Reedijk was appointed Hibs boss during the international break and is still looking for his first win after 1-0 and 2-1 losses to Dundee United and Falkirk respectively.
Many Hibs fans expected big changes as Reedijk took over from Gray, mainly in formation and style of play, but a change in captaincy was not expected by many Hibs fans, especially given Boyle has been at Hibs for the best part of 11 years.
Speaking on Passlack’s new captaincy, Reedijk said: “For me, it is important that everybody has his role, and the roles now are based on the observations I’ve made.
“Felix is a leader by example. He goes a thousand miles, does his utmost best, leaves everything on the pitch, and this is what we need at the moment – therefore, he is captain.
“He is a guy who is right for the moment. He is a guy who also has to give his opinion and is someone who is experienced enough to know what’s demanded.”
Reedijk also insisted that Boyle had not been ‘demoted’ from his role, he said: “I had a conversation with Martin about this. It’s not that he’s not a leader; he’s a different type of leader.
“I believe that at this moment in time, the team needs a leader other than Martin.
“Martin, for me, is someone who is always brave and wants to ask for the ball and does things. He can change a mindset in a dressing room or on the pitch just by an action or something which is unexpected in that sense.
“This is what I like about Martin.
“We had an honest conversation about this. I spoke to him about his leadership role, how I see it, and he completely bought into it and agreed.”
Joe Newell’s recent career has been plagued by injuries, which is what led to Martin Boyle stepping up and wearing the armband more often. It’s likely that newell will retain the armband should he enter the pitch, but in the meantime, the armband belongs to Passlack.
No matter who leads Hibs out on Sunday, they have a difficult task ahead of them. Hibs are currently rooted to the bottom of the table and will take on league leaders Celtic, who are coming off a 7-1 win over Hearts last weekend.
