Hull City have endured another challenging week off the field, with the Tigers continuing to come under scrutiny from their supporters and pundits, as their winless run in the league has been extended to 11 matches.

Grant McCann’s side suffered another alarming defeat against Stoke City last time out, with the Tigers producing a performance littered with defensive errors as they fell to a 5-1 defeat at the Bet365 Stadium – and that means they are now just a place and two points clear of the bottom three.

There have also been some speculation regarding the futures of some Hull players, while McCann’s side have suffer a boost over a few of the players who have been struggling through injuries over the last few weeks and months.

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Here then, we take a look at FOUR of the biggest Hull related stories from the past week...

McCann’s defiant message over his future

Following Hull’s terrible performance in their 5-1 loss at Stoke last weekend, McCann inevitably faced further scrutiny over his potential long-term future as the club’s manager, with the former Doncaster Rovers boss needing to find a way of turning things around very quickly.

In his post-match press conference following that defeat at Stoke, McCann insisted that he will continue to fight to help the Tigers turn around their form, and suggested that he will be needing his players to re-find the confidence they showed earlier in the campaign.

McCann will now be given something of a reprieve from all of the speculation over his future, with the EFL announcing that the season will be suspended until at least April 3^rd and that means the Tigers will have time to reflect on how the season is progressing over the next few weeks.

Angus MacDonald’s return

One of the major positives to have emerged from this week at Hull is that Angus MacDonald has been able to make his first appearance for the club in 556 days, after he took part in the club’s under-23s match against Birmingham City playing 60 minutes.

MacDonald has been unavailable for Hull throughout the season so far, having been diagnosed with the early stages of bowel cancer, but the defender has now thankfully managed to overcome the health scare having been given the all clear back in December.

Hull will of course be very aware of the need to ease him back into first team football, but the Tigers will just be thrilled that he has started the road to getting back available for consistent selection, and the defender will be hoping he can return to full fitness as soon as possible.

Matthew Pennington’s uncertain future

Matthew Pennington has managed to force his way into the side over the last few weeks, with injuries to the likes of Reece Burke and Jordy De Wijs giving him the chance to play more of an important role for the Tigers, but the defender has been struggling for form in the last few matches.

The defender, who is on a season-long loan at Hull from Everton, looks set to face an uncertain future in the summer, with Everton reportedly keen to help him find a new permanent club in the summer transfer window.

It will be interesting to see whether Hull would be willing to make a move for the defender, but that could well depend on how much of an impact he can have during the rest of his loan spell, and of course on whether they are still in the Championship next term.

Lewis Ritson attracting interest ahead of summer move

Another player facing an uncertain future at the KCOM Stadium is defender Lewis Ritson, who has been unable to force his way into the first team plans of McCann, even despite Hull suffering a number of injuries to some their defenders over the last few weeks.

That has reportedly seen the defender be eager to make a move away from the club to get more regular minutes elsewhere next season, and he has been linked with moves to Scottish side St Mirren, Italian side Perugia and Shelbourne in the League of Ireland.