The 2022/23 Championship season kicks off later this week, and in East Riding of Yorkshire there has cautious optimism that Hull City could potentially be the surprise package of the second tier.

Having survived relegation last season, Acun Ilicali has overseen a transformation of the Tigers squad in recent weeks, with their main talisman Keane Lewis-Potter departing for a significant eight-figure fee to Brentford.

Despite that, a plethora of players have arrived at the MKM Stadium - some with significant international experience - and others that have the potential to develop and take the club back to the Premier League.

 

 

 

 

Optimism may have waned somewhat with a disappointing defeat to Peterborough United in pre-season action this past weekend, but Shota Arveladze will be hoping to leave the poor performances behind when they take to competitive matches at the end of this week.

In the meantime, let's look at some of the latest City headlines at the start of this week.

Nwakaeme deal off?

Having already signed plenty of players this summer who have played in Türkiye thanks to Ilicali's connections, Hull looked set to be signing another in the form of experienced Nigerian forward Anthony Nwakaeme.

Per Turkish reporter Yağız Sabuncuoğlu, the 33-year-old, who scored 13 times and notched 10 assists for Trabzonspor as they won the Super Lig last season, was heading to Hull to put pen-to-paper on a deal.

However, a fresh update over the weekend from Sabuncuoğlu has suggested that due to Nwakaeme's financial demands, the deal to bring him to the Tigers has now been 'suspended'.

That doesn't mean it is dead and buried, but it is a significant blow right now as Arveladze looks to bolster his attacking options further.

Wilks absent amid Wednesday links

Soccer Football - Championship - Hull City v Peterborough United - KCOM Stadium, Hull, Britain - October 20, 2021 Hull City's Mallik Wilks Action Images/Craig Brough EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.

The possibility of Mallik Wilks heading to Sheffield Wednesday this summer is seemingly not going away, and his absence from both of Hull's weekend pre-season fixtures has seen speculation over his future intensify.

The Owls are keen on the forward, who played just once under Arveladze last season, but vice-chairman Tan Kesler has publicly stated that the offer for the 23-year-old hasn't been enough, and right now there is a stalemate in negotiations.

Despite the door reportedly being open for Wilks to be a squad player at Hull, it appears going off this past weekend that he could be close to the exit door.

Fitness worries ahead of season opener

Hull's defeats to Leicester City and Peterborough this past week saw a number of first-team players miss out on the squad through injury, and that could be a worry as they face Bristol City this weekend in the Championship.

Ryan Longman, Alfie Jones and Nathan Baxter - all important players from lasts season - were absent from both defeats, and there are no guarantees that they will be ready for the season opener at home to the Robins.

Despite the arrival of several new faces at Hull this summer, they are still lacking some quality depth in a number of positions, and if the aforementioned trio miss out on Saturday then they could be vulnerable from the off.