Kevin Nisbet vows there's more to come as Hibs striker nears full fitness

The Scotland striker scored against Rangers at Ibrox in his first appearance since February before grabbing a goal and setting up another for Chris Cadden in the 4-0 victory over Livingston. He might have had more – one effort was saved while another was flagged for offside. He didn’t have as many clear-cut opportunities in the Edinburgh derby or the defeat by the Hoops but with three goal involvements in seven meetings with the Steelmen in a Hibs shirt, Nisbet would dearly love to add to that during Sunday’s lunchtime kick-off at Fir Park.

“We have had a positive reaction this week on the training pitch. We’ve been trying to rectify a few wrongs from the Hearts game earlier in the week,” he said, speaking ahead of the trip to North Lanarkshire.

“We are all staying as positive as we can, we have some big games coming up and the first one of those is on Sunday. We need to be more clinical in both boxes, and do the basics right. We need to start putting the ball in the back of the net and cut out our mistakes. In terms of being more clinical, that’s down to me to make sure I can put the ball in the back of the net.”

Hibs have struggled for goals this season, particularly from attackers. In just four games Nisbet has outscored Elias Melkersen, Harry McKirdy, and Élie Youan although the hope at HTC will surely be that his comeback can help right some wrongs in the final third.

Nisbet has spoken extensively about turning his career around, working his way up through the divisions after initially struggling in the top flight with Partick Thistle. It is in the player’s character to demand more. First and foremost for him is the team result but if Hibs won 4-0 with Nisbet scoring a hat-trick, chances are he’d be irked at not getting all four.

It is that sort of character that manager Lee Johnson is looking for from his whole squad in a bid to turn around the team’s form. He has consistently voiced his belief that players returning from injury can make a difference to his struggling side. Against Hearts, Nisbet completed his first 90 minutes since February 9 and, in a warning shot to opposition defenders and goalkeepers, revealed that he believes he is still chasing that last little bit of match sharpness and 100 per cent fitness.

“I am relatively happy with my performances so far. I know I had chances in both the Hearts and Celtic games to score, and I didn’t put them away so I need to take ownership of that and make sure I can take my chances when they come on Sunday,” he continued.

“I probably still have more to give, it will take a wee while to get myself back to full fitness and regain that match sharpness but everything is certainly going in the right direction.”