Nick Montgomery knows what he likes. And there is no real reason for him to mess with a formula that, if not quite guaranteed to produce victory, at least gives him a better chance of claiming a major Scottish Cup scalp at Easter Road tomorrow.
When Philippe Clement's Rangers team arrive in Edinburgh for the tea-time kick-off, the visiting head coach will have the luxury of being able to rest some of the players who battled Benfica to a 2-2 standstill in Portugal on Thursday night. Monty could also freshen up his team. But, having had a full week of training since last weekend's home win over Ross County, don't expect any radical alterations.
A first clean sheet in the league since December 9 means Hibs are pretty much guaranteed to stick with the same back four, the return of Rocky Bushiri adding steel to the centre of defence alongside Will Fish. A lot of the new miserliness in defence is also down to the change to a three-man midfield.
Nathan Moriah-Welsh limped out of the County game at half-time, Dylan Levitt taking his place and immediately lifting the pace of play with his go-forward passing, the Wales cap's performance topped by a fine goal. Montgomery has a decision to make over who partners Joe Newell in the engine room.
The front four more or less picks itself these days, with Myziane Maolida on the left, Martin Boyle at right wing, Emi Marcondes in the No. 10 position and Dylan Vente up top. Vente could do with a goal to go with all the hard work he's put in of late.
Here's how we think Hibs will line up tomorrow:
2. RB Chris Cadden 7/10
Absolutely excellent, even without his key part in the third goal. Hibs will be hoping that the knock which forced him off just after the hour mark isn’t serious. Photo: Paul Devlin - SNS Group
3. CB Will Fish 7/10
Stood up admirably to a lot of direct balls and the physical threat of Livi, who couldn’t be faulted for at least trying to rough up the Hibs defence. Good clean sheet.
4. CB Rocky Bushiri 6/10
A little bit more erratic than his defensive partner. But he was up against the type of opponents who usually cause him much more trouble. Solid.