Time is tight for Hibs targets Marc and Stephane
Paul Heckingbottom remains hopeful of bringing Marc McNulty and Stephane Omeonga back to Hibs this summer.
But the Easter Road gaffer admits time is running out.
Reading star McNulty and Genoa prospect Omeonga shone on loan in Leith last season, and both have expressed a desire to return.
However, with each player tied to contracts with three years still to run, any such moves will require careful negotiation.
Hibs’ first taste of competitive action is just two weeks away, so their manager knows he can’t wait forever.
“It’s still a possibility for Omeonga. It’s just really difficult when he’s not our player,” said Heckingbottom.
“There’s stuff I could say. He wants to come, we’d love to have him.
“We’re constantly in contact with him and his agent. He actually let us know he was playing Under-21s for Belgium the other day.
“He’s a good fit for us, but whether we can do it or not, we’ll have to wait and see. “And the difficulty is, we can’t wait. “We can’t leave gaps in the squad for McNulty or Omeonga, even though we’d love to have them.
“We give it until we make another signing. “There will come a point where we’ll be able to say: ‘We’ve got this one. We might get this one’, and we’ll have to take the sure thing.”
The arrival of Scott Allan has boosted Heckingbottom’s squad this summer, and the Hibs gaffer knows the talent he has.
But he insists the midfielder will be expected to add graft to the game-changing craft in his arsenal.
“He’s a creative spark, without a doubt,” admitted Heckingbottom.
“I’ve already spoken to him about what I’ve seen in his game that I didn’t expect. I’ll be pushing him on that and, if we can get it, it will be a real benefit for the team.
“I’m looking forward to getting him on the pitch and really pushing him.
“Every manager’s different. I’ll be asking him to do different things to previous bosses.
“But the one thing none of us can do is give him his ability on the ball. He’s really comfortable, wants to have it, accepts it in good areas, so we need capitalise on that.
“It’s his third spell and he’d say now: ‘Why have I left twice?’. It seems to be his home, where he plays well and enjoys it. Hopefully we can take him on again to be even better.
“He’ll have to knuckle down. You can’t have anybody not contributing without the ball. Scott knows that. But he can do it.”