Having suffered through a very poor pre-season, Hibs were under pressure to get off to a good start in the Scottish Premier League, but they lost their first game 1–0 at Kilmarnock.
The team then bounced back with an entertaining 3–2 win at Easter Road against Falkirk, but drew with Inverness Caledonian Thistle and lost 1–0 at home to Motherwell.
The draw in the derby started a run of six games without a win for Hibs, including defeats by Celtic (4–2), Inverness (2–1) and Dundee United (2–0).
Put together with the early exit from the Scottish Cup, this run of form increased the pressure on manager Mixu Paatelainen.
A home defeat by Dundee United in the first game after the split effectively ended Hibs' chances of qualifying for the Europa League.
The team then enjoyed some unexpectedly good results, winning the last derby of the season at Tynecastle, and holding both halves of the Old Firm to draws at Easter Road.
Having failed to qualify for European competition in the previous season, Hibs entered the Scottish League Cup in the second round.
[10] The second decision was to award a direct free kick against Chris Hogg, which led to the fourth and winning Morton goal.
[11] Paatelainen threw a towel to the ground in disgust at the referee's decisions, which prompted Brines to send the Hibs manager to the stands.
[13] Steven Fletcher was sent off by referee Craig Thomson for a lunging tackle on Hearts captain Christophe Berra during the first half while the match was still goalless.
[19] Hibs then trimmed their squad on the final day of the summer transfer window by releasing Martin Canning, Brian Kerr and Zibi Malkowski, but they brought in Dunfermline central defender Souleymane Bamba.
Mixu Paatelainen was quoted as expecting a "busy day",[20] which was highlighted when Derek Riordan completed a much-anticipated return from Celtic.