Hibernians captain Andrew Cohen is set to see out his career with his boyhood club after the nimble playmaker yesterday announced that he has agreed to extend his contract for another three years.

Cohen has another year left on his existing deal with the champions but the 34-year-old told reporters yesterday that talks with club president Tony Bezzina led to an agreement over a new contract.

“I’ve spoken with Tony Bezzina and we have agreed to extend the contract,” Cohen said.

“The club have offered me a new three-year deal.”

Cohen, who is also willing to start coaching with Hibernians after obtaining his UEFA B badge, later revealed that Bezzina had told him that he can keep playing for the club for as long as he feels fit.

Speaking about today’s game, Cohen declared himself upbeat about Hibernians’ chances of pulling off a positive result at home.

“We have preparing for these games for a whole month,” he said.

“Our squad is almost complete now. It’s going to be a tough game as we are aware of Maccabi’s potential but if we are tactically disciplined, we can attain a good result.”

Hibs have been one of the leading sides in Maltese football in the last two decades but they have struggled to make their mark in Europe.

Last season, they suffered a 9-2 aggregate drubbing to Spartak Trnava but Cohen believes that Hibs can take heart from their spirited fightback in the home leg.

“If I’m not mistaken, Hibs have not passed a round in European competition since 2002,” he said.

“We were unfortunate in that, when we improved our UEFA co-efficient and therefore had the chance to draw a weaker team on paper, the next season we failed to qualify for Europe.

“But that is in the past. These kind of games don’t scare me. Last year, we were 3-0 down but clawed back two goals before conceding late on.

“As the coach said, a game can be decided by small details. If we stay compact and focused, we will have a chance.”