Graham Mitchell believes Record Sport's Ryan Stevenson has scored the biggest own-goal since Craig Levein claimed to have restored natural order at Hearts.
The Easter Road legend has hit back at the former Gorgie star for claiming the Jambos are now bigger than Sunday’s Edinburgh derby and believes the comment will bite him on the backside just as it did with the ex-Tynecastle boss. Stevenson also insists Robbie Neilson's side are on a different level from their city rivals and should routinely be taking care of a team which finished bottom six last term ahead of Sunday's first collision of the season in Leith.
Levein claimed Hearts had restored "natural order" when they beat Hibs for the first time in 10 games in the Scottish Cup in January 2018 before Neil Lennon's led Hibees moved 12 points above them in the Premiership by March. Mitchell is adamant Stevenson's wide of the mark by insisting Hearts, 'are on a different level from Hibs and has lit the fuse for a fixture which is always too close to call.
He said: "The last person who made a silly remark about the derby was Craig Levein and it came straight back to bite him on the bum. When he said natural order had been restored after Hearts beat Hibs a few years ago, I remember thinking how foolish and premature it sounded. Hibs went on a run and won game after game and moved well ahead of Hearts and Craig was left to regret that statement but he's the last one I remember to show that type of lack of respect.
"If Ryan feels that Hearts are so far ahead that the derby is now less of a fixture in his eyes then fair enough, that's not a problem but these comments do tend to come back to haunt you.
"It may prove to be the case that he's come out and said that far too early. All of a sudden it can change and you end up with egg on your face. Derby games are always huge occasions, it's a fixture where not many people remember the performances but they always remember the results.
"It's a huge lack of respect and I don't like to hear these remarks from ex-professionals or people still in the game.
"It comes across as needing to hear your own voice or trying to be controversial, especially so early into a season.
The former Hibs defender, who spent a decade at the club, also insists Lee Johnson's men are far too early into their season to be judged properly and he's convinced last weekend's Premiership opening day win at St Johnstone is a more impressive result than Hearts in their success over Ross County.
He said: "It's early in the season but if you take the two league games the both teams have played in isolation then I would say the Hibs result at St Johnstone was a better result than Hearts beating County 2-1 at home. Hearts had the expectation on them to win that game and I'm sure their fans would have been demanding that.
"I thought it was a great result for Hibs to go to Perth and win on the first day. That will have given them a great lift as it hasn't been the ideal season. There was the League Cup administration error and some poor results but these cup games come far too early for clubs and they are like pre-season games.
"I believe Lee Johnson is a good manager, he'll need time to get things right and I think he will. He's signed well and it's a loss to have Aiden McGeady out injured for a few months but he still has plenty of options.
"It's unfortunate but he'll prove to be a key player for Hibs."
Hearts haven't lost at Easter Road for four years and are six games unbeaten in the derby but Mitchell is adamant previous history is always redundant when focusing on the immediate task in hand.
He said: "As a player I didn't look too far ahead or behind me. If an Edinburgh derby or Old Firm game was coming up I wouldn't know until the week before it. I never looked ahead and once the game was finished, that was it, it was finished.
"Pals of mine would know the fixtures well ahead of time and they would ask for tickets and I would say, 'for what game?"
"They couldn't believe it would be for the weekend Edinburgh derby.
"This game on Sunday will be huge, regardless of comments from elsewhere. Hibs will have new hope after their win at McDiarmid Park and I wouldn't bet against them beating Hearts. These games are won and lost on narrow margins.
"If Hibs start well and get their fans behind them then they are more than capable of getting the result and that changes the picture at a stroke. Talk isn't worth much in football, I prefer to see what is achieved on the pitch and hopefully Hibs will do their talking on the park this weekend."
