Farid El Alagui reckons Hibs are just as good as Championship winners Hearts.
And ahead of today’s crunch Edinburgh derby, the Hibees frontman insists the only reason the Jam Tarts won promotion at a canter is because they had more time to prepare.
Hearts’ title win was confirmed an astonishing three weeks ago after Hibs then their closest challengers slumped to defeat against Rangers at Ibrox.
Alan Stubbs’ side followed that result up with two more dismal losses to leave their hopes of a second-place finish up in the air.
But fit again striker El Alagui insists there’s NO difference in ability between players of the two Edinburgh clubs.
Instead, he claimed the 26-point gap between the sides can be explained by the fact that the Jam Tarts knew they were doomed last term long before Hibs’ play-off disaster.
He said: “If you look at the quality of their players and the quality of our players, I don’t think there’s much difference.
“But when you start the season well, have a good run and confidence is high, you don’t think about anything, you just get through it.
“Small details are the difference they are why you get promoted. As a footballer, I think we have a team as good as they have. The big difference is confidence.
“We needed a few games to find the way we play, to see the real quality of the players we have.
“Hearts didn’t need that, and that’s why they have done really well.
“Fair play to them. Everyone was expecting them to drop points at some point, but they didn’t. They kept going and going. But their situation was different from ours.
“Hearts knew they were going to be relegated quite early last year. They had time to prepare themselves for this season.
“For us, it was more last-minute, so we didn’t have the same chance.”
El Alagui’s return to first-team action just seven months after snapping his Achilles tendon against Alloa has been hailed as something of a miracle.
Normally, such injuries lead to lay-offs approaching a full year. But the Hibs man opted for the same pioneering surgery that allowed GB
bobsleigh pilot, John Jackson, to return from his own tear in seven months, in time to compete in the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Jackson suffered a relapse last September, but El Alagui is confident he made the right decision.
He said: “‘I got injured on the Saturday and met the surgeon on the Monday.
“I realised it was the right thing to do straight away. I could have asked for another opinion, but I didn’t feel the need for that.
“I didn’t speak to the bobsleigh athlete, it was just through the surgeon. But I did read a few Internet articles on him and how happy he was to come back so quick.
“That gave me a bit more confidence.”
El Alagui would admit himself that is something Hibs need to rediscover.
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