It's crazy to think Hibs could mash Swedes

FILIPE MORAIS today admitted he'd been left bewildered by the barrage of flak directed at Hibs following their InterToto Cup defeat by Swedish side IF Elfsborg.

But, while the winger can understand the fans' frustration at seeing the Easter Road outfit's European adventure all but ended by Elfsborg's 2-0 win in Edinburgh, he insisted much of the criticism fell well wide of the mark.

Refusing to concede the tie is over – although he admitted overcoming a two-goal deficit in the Boras Arena in Saturday's second leg was a tall order – he said: "I was surprised at the reaction in one way, but not the other.

"The supporters expect a lot here and I can see where they are coming from but they haven't seen what's been going on behind the scenes as we have, having been on the training ground every day. We'd had a lot of hard running, were still feeling stiff and we were nowhere near as sharp as we should be to play a game. So, while I can understand their frustrations, I think people could have understood what was going on a little better.

"I think there is still a tendency in Britain to think that, when we are playing a foreign club, we should win, I find that hilarious. Some people seemed to think we should run all over Elfsborg even if we were not fully fit. That's crazy.

"People don't seem to understand how good Swedish football is, they were at Euro 2008 – Scotland weren't – and they could possibly have gone on from a very difficult group which included the winners Spain and Russia."

Morais believes Hibs, despite going behind to an Elmir Bajrami goal after 17 minutes, more or less held their own against a side riding high in the Allsvenskan until Andreas Augustsson's deflected shot gave Elfsborg a comfortable lead to take home to Sweden.

Even so, Morais insisted the whole complexion of the game could have changed had Hibs managed to score before Augustsson's strike, pointing to his own powerful shot which was cleared by the left boot of goalkeeper Johan Wiland, who then pulled off a great save from Steven Fletcher only seconds before the Swedes claimed their second goal.

And that, he declared, should give Mixu Paatelainen's players hope as they board their flight for Gothenburg tomorrow morning.

Conceding Elfsborg could well have added to their tally as he and his team-mates visibly tired, the former Chelsea Academy youngster said: "We were talking in the showers afterwards about the little chances we had before they scored again.

"A goal for us would, I think, most definitely have changed the game so it just goes to show how finely things are balanced at times during a match. Of course it is all ifs and buts now but, if we can go to Sweden and claim an early goal, who knows what might happen?"

Elfsborg may have lost for the first time on their own plastic pitch last night, going down 1-0 to Gefle, but Morais believes both he and his team-mates will be better prepared for Saturday's match in Boras having now had the benefit of 90 minutes against Magnus Haglund's side.

He said: "It's a big ask for us this weekend, they showed what a good side they are even if we aren't fully match fit. You could see how well disciplined and organised they are.

"Their wingers on both sides always come right back, which made it difficult for us to break down. It meant Dean Shiels on the other flank and myself always had two players to beat rather than just the full-back.

"Anders Svensson provided that little bit of creativity in the middle of the park and I thought the left-winger (Bajrami] was very quick and caused us a lot of problems. They are a very good team.

"Even so, we managed to create some openings and had some shots so there were some positives for us to take from the game. If we can do that again and hopefully sneak the first goal of the game and show we can cause them problems then, you never know, they might panic a little bit."

Boss Paatelainen has consistently insisted that, as much as he would like to overcome Elfsborg and make progress to the UEFA Cup itself, he's viewing the matches against the Swedish side as very much preparation for the new SPL season, which begins in a month's time.

And, he has declared, it will provide his players with invaluable European experience which will stand them in good stead in future years, a view shared by Morais who revealed his only previous such venture had been in the prestigious Gothia Cup in Gothenburg nearly ten years ago.

He said: "I was 14 or 15, playing for my local side in Slough, the Langley Lions. We were a really small club for that standard of tournament, it's a massive competition with all the biggest clubs at it.

"We did quite well. If my memory serves me right, we missed out on qualifying from our group by a point. But it was a wonderful experience, I thoroughly enjoyed Sweden and I'm looking forward to going back this weekend."

Some have questioned Paatelainen's wisdom in sanctioning Hibs entry to the InterToto Cup, bringing with it an earlier-than-usual start to the season for his players but Morais is in no doubt, claiming only the luck of the draw has drawn the criticism which followed in the wake of Sunday's defeat.

He said: "No disrespect to the team from Riga and Bohemians, who will meet the winners of our tie, but, had we been drawn against either of them, then I'd like to think we'd have done well – even at this stage of the season.

"Instead, we got Elfsborg, a very good side halfway through their season and doing very well in their league. However, these games, as the gaffer has said, will give us some terrific experience. Elfsborg played 11 or 12 matches in Europe last season alone – you'd be hard pushed to find anyone in our side who has played much more than one game. That shows the difference in experience between our sides and at this level it counts for a lot. But we will learn from it, we'll have a bit more experience next season if we qualify for the UEFA Cup as we hope and even more the year after, that's what the players need."