Championship Preview – Hull
Posted on | August 7, 2010 | No Comments
Hull’s achievement in getting to the Premiership a few years ago was nothing short of unbelievable yet that stint has seemingly crippled them financially. The KC Stadium side are carrying huge debts and it looks as though there will be a few years of rebuilding before they get back to the heights of the top flight. While City aren’t tipped as being a huge force this season, their supporters will have been pleased to hear the news that Nigel Pearson is taking over from Iain Dowie as manager. Considering the financial position that Hull find themselves in, netting a manager of Pearson’s statue is a superb coup and they’ll be hoping that he can achieve similar success as to what he’s tasted at Leicester over the past few years.
The writing was on the wall for Hull City last season after their previous campaign. In their first season in the top flight, the Tigers were superb in the first half of the season only to have an absolutely dreadful second half that nearly saw them relegated. Phil Brown quickly lost respect from a lot of quarters and when the club started last season just how they finished the previous, many of their supporters were seriously worried. In the end, with the club rooted in the bottom three, the board took action and Brown was placed on gardening leave in March. His successor was Iain Dowie and unfortunately for him, it appeared the damage was already done and the club were eventually relegated. However, the rot didn’t stop there and it was soon revealed that the club were crippled with debts and in desperate need of offloading high earners. With that, supporters knew that times ahead would be tough and that major rebuilding was necessary if the club were to bounce back to the top division any time soon.
It would be fair to say that the club were in something of limbo at the end of last season, with Iain Dowie’s contract expiring meaning that the Tigers were manager-less and apparently cash strapped. With that, Tigers fans were delighted when it was announced that Leicester manager Nigel Pearson had been appointed as the new manager after a deal had been quickly struck with the Foxes back in June. Pearson’s CV is certainly impressive and having orchestrated a promotion and a play off finish for the Foxes in his two seasons in charge, he was classed as one of the most promising bosses in the division. There’s no doubting he has a huge task on his hands though and after losing Stephen Hunt, Dean Marney, Boaz Myhill and Steven Mouyokolo through the summer, he certainly has to rebuild. What’s more, Jimmy Bullard is unlikely to play for the club again and due to his wages, Pearson has been instructed to try and offload him at the earliest opportunity. However, on the positive side the former Southampton boss has brought some real talent in with the likes of James Harper and Nolberto Solano joining from Sheffield United and Leicester respectively. However, both of those have arrived on free transfers which gives an indication of the little resources Pearson has available. Tottenham midfielder John Bostock has also just arrived at the club and he’s a player that’s always carried promise, but this is another signing that hasn’t cost the club a penny after the former Crystal Palace teenager arrived on a season-long loan.
There’s no doubt that Hull’s squad is weaker than last season, although with Nigel Pearson at the helm they probably have a much more talented manager. They have lost some key players but when they gained promotion a few years ago, they didn’t have too many big names and their supporters will be hoping for a similar outcome in this campaign. The best odds for a Tigers promotion come at 13/2, indicating that the bookies believe a season of consolidation is in line for the KC Stadium side. For us, we think they can go one better. We rate Pearson as one of the top managers in the league and the job he did at Leicester was nothing short of miraculous. He’s got his hands tied behind his back in this one, but we think he can mastermind a playoff push for City in this campaign.
Hull’s achievement in getting to the Premiership a few years ago was nothing short of unbelievable yet that stint has seemingly crippled them financially. The KC Stadium side are carrying huge debts and it looks as though there will be a few years of rebuilding before they get back to the heights of the top flight. While City aren’t tipped as being a huge force this season, their supporters will have been pleased to hear the news that Nigel Pearson is taking over from Iain Dowie as manager. Considering the financial position that Hull find themselves in, netting a manager of Pearson’s statue is a superb coup and they’ll be hoping that he can achieve similar success as to what he’s tasted at Leicester over the past few years.
The writing was on the wall for Hull City last season after their previous campaign. In their first season in the top flight, the Tigers were superb in the first half of the season only to have an absolutely dreadful second half that nearly saw them relegated. Phil Brown quickly lost respect from a lot of quarters and when the club started last season just how they finished the previous, many of their supporters were seriously worried. In the end, with the club rooted in the bottom three, the board took action and Brown was placed on gardening leave in March. His successor was Iain Dowie and unfortunately for him, it appeared the damage was already done and the club were eventually relegated. However, the rot didn’t stop there and it was soon revealed that the club were crippled with debts and in desperate need of offloading high earners. With that, supporters knew that times ahead would be tough and that major rebuilding was necessary if the club were to bounce back to the top division any time soon.
It would be fair to say that the club were in something of limbo at the end of last season, with Iain Dowie’s contract expiring meaning that the Tigers were manager-less and apparently cash strapped. With that, Tigers fans were delighted when it was announced that Leicester manager Nigel Pearson had been appointed as the new manager after a deal had been quickly struck with the Foxes back in June. Pearson’s CV is certainly impressive and having orchestrated a promotion and a play off finish for the Foxes in his two seasons in charge, he was classed as one of the most promising bosses in the division. There’s no doubting he has a huge task on his hands though and after losing Stephen Hunt, Dean Marney, Boaz Myhill and Steven Mouyokolo through the summer, he certainly has to rebuild. What’s more, Jimmy Bullard is unlikely to play for the club again and due to his wages, Pearson has been instructed to try and offload him at the earliest opportunity. However, on the positive side the former Southampton boss has brought some real talent in with the likes of James Harper and Nolberto Solano joining from Sheffield United and Leicester respectively. However, both of those have arrived on free transfers which gives an indication of the little resources Pearson has available. Tottenham midfielder John Bostock has also just arrived at the club and he’s a player that’s always carried promise, but this is another signing that hasn’t cost the club a penny after the former Crystal Palace teenager arrived on a season-long loan.
There’s no doubt that Hull’s squad is weaker than last season, although with Nigel Pearson at the helm they probably have a much more talented manager. They have lost some key players but when they gained promotion a few years ago, they didn’t have too many big names and their supporters will be hoping for a similar outcome in this campaign. The best odds for a Tigers promotion come at 13/2, indicating that the bookies believe a season of consolidation is in line for the KC Stadium side. For us, we think they can go one better. We rate Pearson as one of the top managers in the league and the job he did at Leicester was nothing short of miraculous. He’s got his hands tied behind his back in this one, but we think he can mastermind a playoff push for City in this campaign.
Related posts:
- Championship Preview: Hull
- Hull v Burnley Preview
- Championship Preview – QPR
- Barnsley v Hull Preview
- Hull v Preston Preview
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