THERE'S a distinctly odd look to Hibs pre-season schedule, the name Barcelona immediately jumping out as it sits between those of Raith Rovers and Clyde.
The glamour match against the Catalan giants is undoubtedly the pick of the bunch, but today Easter Road star John Rankin insisted Thursday night's clash at Murrayfield will, ultimately, prove no more important than the trip to Stark's Park which pre
ceded it and the journey to Broadwood that follows.
It is all, he declared, just part of Hibs boss Mixu Paatelainen's carefully planned pre-season programme which began with the InterToto Cup matches against IF Elfsborg and will end with visits from English Premier League sides Middlesbrough and Wigan Athletic.
The midfielder said: "There's no doubt about it, the prospect of playing a side such as Barcelona is exciting, but the most important thing is we are ready for Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on the opening day of the season.
"The name of Barcelona may overshadow everything else, but in the big scheme of things it is no more important than any of our other pre-season games.
"The over-riding concern for us is that it will provide another 90 minutes building towards match fitness and the sharpness required."
That said, Rankin admitted he has detected an edge in training over the past few days with every member of Paatelainen's squad desperate for what is a rare chance to play against a team of Barca's quality and the vast array of stars contained within it.
He said: "Barcelona are one of the giants of world football so we are all really wanting to play against them. There's been a buzz in training that's not normally there at this time.
"I don't think it will be a case of being nervous when we walk out to play them but I think seeing those famous jerseys alongside us will give us an added wee spur.
"It may only be pre-season when the result counts for nothing, but to play them at any time is a fantastic opportunity and I am sure we will all enjoy it.
"There's no pressure. It's a friendly and we want to make it as competitive as possible and show what we can do against players of that calibre."
If the focus this summer has been on players such as Ronaldinho, Deco and Samuel Eto'o departing the Nou Camp, Rankin pointed out that a huge array of talent remains with the likes of Iniesta, Carles Puyol and Xavi who all helped Spain clinch the European Championships in thrilling style.
Xavi, Iniesta and Puyol will be late arrivals in Edinburgh following their exertions at Euro 2008, but the remainder of new boss Pep Guardiola's squad were due in the Capital later today, Thierry Henry, Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto'o being joined by new signings Alexander Hleb, David Alves and Gerard Pique.
Testing himself against such players doesn't overawe former Manchester United trainee Rankin in the slightest, although he admitted he and his team-mates can expect a long, hard night if they don't retain possession of the ball.
He said: "Spain deservedly won Euro 2008 as they looked to play attacking football whenever they could. The Barcelona players are playing in if not the best League in the world then certainly the second best, and they are always first or second in it every year. They have some of the world's best players but hopefully we can play our own style as, I am sure, they'll play theirs.
"We'll obviously respect them, but not too much. We aren't going to stand back and admire them, we'll want to play the tempo we'd be expected to play.
"The gaffer has been complaining that we've not been careful enough with our passes in some of our games already, that we've given possession away too readily. If we do that against a team like Barca then we might not see the ball for quite a while at times.
"On a personal level I hope the likes of Iniesta, Hleb and Messi all play in their midfield. You always want to play against the best to test yourself and I'd love to have 90 minutes against guys like them."
While many have questioned whether Barcelona still retain the pull they had a year ago when they played Dundee United and Hearts in pre-season friendlies, given that the Spanish side have since played Celtic and Rangers in European competition, Rankin disagrees with the idea that familiarity might detract from their allure.
He said: "I don't think there's anything taken away from Thursday night's game just because Barcelona have been to Scotland a few times in the past year, certainly not as far as the players are concerned. They are one of the best teams in the world and we are desperate to play them. Such chances don't come around too often, and who can say when Barcelona might be back in this country?"
Rankin also hopes Paatelainen's players can produce a performance to reassure the Hibs support following the club's early exit from the InterToto Cup, one which left them working out at the club's impressive training centre over the weekend instead of playing again in that competition.
However, like many of his team-mates, the former Inverness Caledonian Thistle star believes too much was read into those games against the Swedes.
He said: "Of course we would like to have made progress and to have got into the UEFA Cup itself. but while we were all disappointed not to win, we went into these games also knowing it was part of our pre-season preparations, competitive games which will, hopefully, give us an edge come August 9.
"For some people to start writing us off on the basis of those two games was, I thought, a bit over the top. Elfsborg had played in the Champions League and the UEFA Cup last season, they had players like Anders Svensson and Teddy Lucic with almost 200 caps for Sweden between them and they were halfway through their season when those were our first matches.
"Again, like Thursday night at Murrayfield, they were part of the overall plan to ensure we are in peak condition for the start of the SPL season. Our aim, obviously, is to do as well as we can in our own domestic League and, hopefully, to be competing in the UEFA Cup next season."
Hibs' ticket office will be open until 7pm on Tuesday and Wednesday nights to sell briefs for the Barcelona game but it will close at 5pm on match day.
There will be no cash gates on the night at Murrayfield, a decision outwith the control of the Easter Road club which is not in charge of arrangements for the fixture.
The full article contains 1140 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
