KEY TAKEAWAYS
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Hull City owner promises big striker signing in statement to rest of the Championship.
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Previous spending forces team to balance books, affecting recent vivacity and performance.
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Fans hopeful for ambitious acquisitions, cautious about potential letdowns as deadline nears.
Hull City owner Acun Ilicali has warned the rest of the Championship that the Tigers are set to make a statement striker signing.
This period in the footballing calendar perhaps hasn’t gone how many Hull fans would have hoped. Their large expenditure last time out has forced them to balance the books a bit, and their vivaciousness has lessened.
The words that have come from those in the Tigers’ hierarchy certainly haven’t suggested that they are looking to take a backwards step, and, in a recent interview, Ilicali set expectations high for some of the business that they hope to do before the deadline on August 30th.
Acun Ilicali’s striker pledge
The Turkish businessman has said that his side are pushing for a deal that would see them acquire a forward that will really put the rest of the Championship on notice.
Ilicali told Hull Live: “The striker that we’re going to bring will show everybody how serious we are in this league and again I thank our fans for believing in us.
“Now they see step by step, that we started making a team not based on loan players but based on permanent players, so if we can get the striker that we want – the one I’m trying everything to do it, but it’s not the easy thing – if we can get him, the whole league will understand how serious we are in trying to write a success story.
“There are some names on the table but I don’t want to speak about them at the moment. For me, transfers are better kept as secrets until they’re in the final stages, so I don’t want to share too many names.”
They’ve already brought in two forwards this summer, with Mason Burstow arriving from Chelsea and Chris Bedia joining the club on loan from Union Berlin.
Mason Burstow’s stats v Plymouth Argyle (17/08/24)
| Mason Burstow’s stats v Plymouth Argyle (17/08/24) | |
|---|---|
| Mins played | 32 |
| Touches | 9 |
| Shots | 1 |
| Shots on target | 0 |
| xG | 0.07 |
| Stats taken from Sofascore | |
While some have already arrived, one is set to leave. Oscar Estupinan is likely to depart from the MKM Stadium in the coming days, according to Ilicali. He was brought back early from a loan spell in Brazil in July, and the Colombian reportedly wants to return to his home continent.
“Yes, it’s probably that he’s going to leave and go back to South America,” said the City owner on Estupinan’s suspected exit. “For me, he is one of the most important players with [Jean Michael] Seri who believed in our project.
“I remember talking to him when I was live on television during the commercial break (summer 2022), I convinced him to come to Hull City because he had many offers at that time. He gave good things to the city and our fans and very probably he will go, and if he goes, we will always remember him with his smiling face and his professionalism.”
Acun Ilicali continues to set the bar high
In England, we have a tendency to downplay things in the hope that we don’t overpromise and under-deliver. Ilicali has taken a look at this way of doing things and has gone in the complete opposite direction.
The feelings of Hull supporters must be conflicting after hearing those quotes. They will be hopeful that a world-beating number nine can come in and revolutionise this team. On the other hand, there will be a bit of pessimism about, one, how good this target actually is and, two, whether they are attainable, if they are as good as Ilicali says they are.
The answer to those questions will be provided over the next week or so, and Hull fans will be praying that they don’t feel let down by the time the deadline hits.
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