In the second of a series of pre-season reports, HarryFromBath assesses the mood around the Championship clubs by delving into their forums, looking here at how things have progressed for the Tigers this summer. A report on Leeds United will follow later today with all of the teams in the division covered between now and the start of the season.
"There is no tangible ambition from the club to mount a serious challenge on the pitch, engage with the fanbase or local community to build momentum”, "The owners have taken a safe option, cutting their cloth and our overheads to the bone. They won’t bankroll signings and will hope for the best.”
"We will continue to stumble along rudderless with no-one at the helm.” All conversations among Tigers inevitably return to the Allam family, the club’s owners whom many blame for their relegation from the Premier League in 2017 and a wider sense of decline at the club in recent seasons.
Expectations for the coming season are muted. "Nigel Adkins will build an unspectacular side that will accrue 50-plus points”, "He’s patient and diplomatic, but he’s up against owners who don’t want to spend money, although they must know that you need some investment just to avoid relegation.”
"We will start slowly but improve as the season progresses and surprise a few towards the end with a late push for the play-offs. Adkins is the right man for the job and I was pleased when we got him. He is experienced at both firefighting and working with youth. Overall we will improve on last year.”
"I trust Adkins and believe he may surprise a few this season.” Many had doubts about the 53-year-old when he replaced the ill-fated Leonid Slutsky last December, but they recognise that he is trying to build a team playing "high-press football with the controlled use of the ball” with tight funds.
"When Adkins came in, I swayed between two thoughts. No manager in their right mind would want to step in to this club with the Allams at the helm or he’s here to be a yes man. We were hammered at Sunderland and in his post-match comments he said that ‘our pre-match warm-up was fantastic’.
"After he said that I was definitely leaning towards him not in his right mind. He tries to find good things in the worst situations and I would rather sometimes he said it as it is. He’s building for the longer team at the minute, but results must turn around this year if he is to appease to fans.”
With parachute payments declining, many high-earners have left the KCOM Stadium this summer. Striker Abel Hernandez and one-time Brentford full-back Moses Odubajo are without clubs at the time of writing having rejected new contracts, but other former first-team regulars have relocated.
Midfielders David Meyler (to Reading), Seb Larsson (to AIK Solna), goalkeeper Allan McGregor (to Glasgow Rangers) and veteran centre-half Michael Dawson (to Nottingham Forest) have found new clubs, while 22-year-old Max Clark has been reunited with Leonid Slutsky at Vitesse Arnhem.
Adkins has substantially rebuilt the team’s defence with the addition of 29-year-old full-back Eric Lichaj from Nottingham Forest, centre-half Jordy de Wijs, 23, from PSV Eindhoven, 21-year-old Reece Burke from West Ham and keeper George Long, the 24-year-old arriving from Sheffield United.
Right-back or midfielder Todd Kane, 24, has arrived on a season-long loan from Chelsea, having played on loan for Oxford United in the second half of last season.
Serb winger David Milinkovic, 24, has also arrived on a three-year deal from Genoa, having played on loan for Hearts last season, while one season-long loan addition from Chelsea has been 24-year-old Todd Kane, a right right-back or midfielder loaned out to Oxford in the second half of last season.
At the time of writing, the Tigers have played three of their five pre-season fixtures. Two outings in Portugal saw them beat CS Maritimo 2-1 and lose 1-4 to SC Braga. Saturday saw them lose 1-0 to a late goal at Rochdale, the goal coming when many of the stronger starting XI had been substituted.
The starting XI (above) at Rochdale is very close to the side expected to open their campaign against Aston Villa. Notable absentees with injuries were defender Ondrej Mazuch, playmaker Jon Toral and forward Jarrod Bowen. Winger Kamil Grosicki was recuperating from World Cup duty with Poland.
The side was heavily altered in the second half, although among the substitutes who did feature were striker Nouha Dicko and midfielder Will Keane. Many Tigers would like to see a potent finisher added to replace the threat of Hernandez, but the squad has balance and depth to be competitive.
One the newcomers, Lichaj is seen as "steady, looking good defensively and a solid Championship full-back” and Kane is "decent, linking well with Lichaj on the right”. Milinkovic "looked flashy but I don’t think he completed a pass. He cut inside from the left all the time, he could go either way.”
On the new centre-backs, De Wijs is "massive, although he looks a bit naïve at times, but it’s good to see a proper left-footed centre-half on the left”. His partner Burke "looks comfortable on the ball. He is calm but there’s not a lot to him physically. I want to see him against Championship forwards.”
"We have a solid enough XI, decent enough to keep us up.” The consensus from the Rochdale defeat was of a work-in-progress team but one lacking some understanding and quality in the final third of the pitch. "It was nice to see a nice passing movement going forward but it fizzled out to nothing.”
The pre-season friendlies tonight at home to Newcastle and at Barnsley on Saturday will give Tigers a clearer idea of this new team’s potential. Most are anticipating a solid if unspectacular campaign, but few fans can envisage any serious promotion challenge while the current owners are in situ.
The busiest Tigers’ forum is the friendly and well-informed Not 606.