Kris Commons looks set to make his Hibernian debut today against Morton at Cappielow after sealing an emergency 28-day loan move to the Easter Road club from Celtic.
Neil Lennon, the Hibs manager, agreed a deal with his former club to bring Commons to the Ladbrokes Championship leaders, and is seriously thinking of starting the 33-year-old against Morton this afternoon. He has not played any football for Celtic in eight months and has been told he can leave the club by Brendan Rodgers.
“Kris has come to us on a 28-day emergency loan, so we’ll have him for four or five games,” said Lennon. “It’s an opportunity for Kris to come and play — he’s not played much football for quite a while.
“At the moment we are short of bodies — we’ve got four or five injuries — my squad is a little bit light. So we did a deal with Celtic, and Kris has come in and trained with us. He is in strong contention, I would say, to play against Morton.”
Lennon is believed to have been trying to lure Commons to Hibs since the summer, knowing that the player was out of favour at Celtic.
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“I know all about Kris’s capabilities, having worked with him for three years at Celtic,” added the Hibs manager. “He’s been out of the picture at Celtic under Brendan, which is fine, because Celtic are a juggernaut at the moment playing some great stuff. So I knew Kris might become available.
“That availability is now and time is of the essence. It is a 28-day loan period. Kris might well be [ring-rusty] but it is a short window of opportunity and we have to take a chance with him.
“We don’t have time to bed him in. The quicker we can get him up to speed, the better. We’ve got to go with him and take that chance. We’ve got four games with him, maybe five games maximum.”
Asked if there was the possibility of extending the Commons loan deal beyond January until the end of the season, Lennon said: “We’ll have to see how it goes. I’m not sure what Celtic’s position is on that. Celtic have been good enough to give us the player for 28 days, and Kris is happy with it as well.”
Commons who was a key player for Lennon during his time in charge of the Scottish champions, said: “It has come about very quickly, but I think it makes sense on both parts. I can try to get some football under my belt and give Hibs a helping hand as well.
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“As much as I am trying to help Hibs, the club are trying to help me out a lot, so I’m grateful to them for giving me the opportunity to play football. I’m also thoroughly looking forward to hopefully helping them on the way and putting on the jersey and doing my best.”
Hibs remain top of the table on goal difference, having lost their points advantage over Dundee United in recent weeks. The two pre-season favourites for the title are eight points ahead of Falkirk, with Morton another three behind.
Commons joined Celtic in January 2011, but his current contract is due to expire at the end of the season. Hibernian’s injury problems mounted this week when midfielder Dylan McGeouch rolled his ankle in training and Lennon will wait until today to see if the former Celtic player’s swelling has subsided.
The midfielders John McGinn, Fraser Fyvie, Alex Harris and Danny Handling are all out for another three or four weeks, along with goalkeeper Ofir Marciano, who has undergone knee surgery. The striker James Keatings has returned to training following injury, but it is unclear whether he will be ready to face Jim Duffy’s side in the early evening kick off.