Hibs have made their first signing of the January transfer window with the signing of Myziane Maolida, 24, from Hertha Berlin.
The French-born winger represents Comoros at international level and has signed on loan until the summer, with no option to buy included in the arrangement. A product of the Lyon academy, he represented France at youth level from under-16 up to under-21, scoring at least once in every age group and sharing a pitch with Élie Youan on seven occasions.
Maolida, who was once on Barcelona's radar, was a €10 million signing for OGC Nice in the summer of 2018, signing a five-year contract, before joining Hertha three years later for €4m. He found game time hard to come by, playing 14 times as Die Alte Dame maintained their Bundesliga status after defeating Hamburg in the play-offs. This pattern continued as he made just three appearances in the first half of the 2022/23 season before returning to the country of his birth with Stade de Reims on a loan deal. He scored once in ten games and returned to Berlin, by which point Hertha had been relegated.
A proposed move to Ankaragücü during the summer of 2023 fell through and Hertha boss Pál Dárdai demoted Maolida to the side's second team, competing in the fourth tier of German football. He has experience of playing in Scotland, having scored in Lyon's 4-0 friendly win against Celtic at Parkhead in July 2017 and netting the only goal in a 1-0 victory for France under-19s against their Scottish counterparts - captained by Ryan Porteous - at the Tony Macaroni Arena three months later.
Montgomery: A 'talented young player hungry to get his career back on track'
Speaking about the transfer Nick Montgomery said: "Myziane is a very talented young player who has undoubted potential to play at the very highest level.
“For us to have the chance to sign a player of this calibre in January is an opportunity we worked hard to make happen, and we’re grateful to Hertha Berlin for agreeing to facilitate this loan.
“At 24 he has already moved to some big clubs but has found himself not playing regularly. He’s now hungry to get his career back on track. After numerous video calls, it was clear both parties really wanted to make this happen.
“Myziane can play centrally and wide, which is really important as we have been light in attacking options. I’m sure the supporters will be excited to see him in Hibs green and white for the rest of the season, and we will continue to search the market for additional signings."
Porteous: 'In a few years' time we'll probably be looking for their names'
Former Hibs defender Porteous skippered Scotland during the under-19 friendly back in October 2017, against a France team containing Maolida as well as current Stuttgart centre-back Dan-Axel Zagadou and Aston Villa forward Moussa Diaby.
Asked about facing Maolida, who had been the subject of a failed €8m bid from Barcelona shortly before lining out in West Lothian, Porteous said: "I have to say I didn’t know who Maolida was, nor was I particularly interested – my focus was purely on our team.
"You stick to your own job and I think we dealt with him well. He scored from a set-piece which was disappointing but we shut him out for much of the game.
“Zagadou was different class. Again, I didn’t know the name but I think in a few years' time we’ll probably be looking for their names and saying, ‘I played against him’.”
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