Jack Ross is likely to again leave Josh Doig out of the Hibernian squad for the visit of HNK Rijeka but is considering his next step with the coveted defender.
The 19-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to England, with Watford and Burnley reportedly among a number of suitors.
Doig was left out of the Hibs squad for the 3-2 cinch Premiership win over Motherwell at Fir Park on Sunday with Ross stating that the talented teenager was “highly likely” to move on soon.
Ahead of the Easter Road side’s home Europa Conference League qualifying first-leg match against the Croatian team on Thursday night, head coach Ross told HibsTV: “Josh will most likely not be in the squad again tomorrow evening but beyond that I think we will start to reassess again because it a decision we made on Sunday based on something imminent happening.
“It has not been concluded as yet and if it continues like that we need to be sure that we look after ourselves properly as a club and look after Josh properly as a player and a young man.
“We will see how things develop over the next 24 to 48 hours again and go from there.”
Hibs made their way through the second-qualifying round by beating Andorran outfit Santa Coloma 5-1 on aggregate, before a thrilling victory against Motherwell.
Ross, who is likely to go with the same squad he took to Fir Park, is pleased to go into the match against HNK Rijeka with the momentum of three straight wins at the start of the season.
He said: “In the main we came off the back of a good season but the concern was that the last game of the season was a really disappointing one for us (Scottish Cup final defeat) so we didn’t want to carry that into this season.
“Our pre-season performances and results were good and we have carried it into the competitive matches and it is a fantastic thing in football to have, that mentality that you are used to winning games.
“The players developed that last season and already you can see their taste for it again.
“They have players who can deal with the ball but we have that as well, which is sometimes not appreciated enough in this country.
“They have three forwards who like to get shots off so they carry an attacking threat, you can see that by the number of goals they have scored in their own league to date but it is not a challenge that is unsurmountable for us.
“It is a challenge that we feel as we are able to deal with and it is about us playing well in order to win the game.”
