Has there ever been a Premier League team quite so thoroughly unprepared for Premier League football than Hull City?

They have no manager, no players, no signings, no hope. The chairman is ill, but don’t worry, his son is doing a bang-up job! The fans are worried, and so is everyone with a connection to the club. And plenty of those without a connection.

Last season

Hull City 1516 season

Last season started well for Hull, but they stagnated somewhat throughout the year. Ultimately, though, they did exactly what they needed to do to get themselves back in the Premier League.

Their squad was always too good for the Championship, but clearly isn’t good enough for the Premier League right now.

What does success look like?

Nottingham Forest v Hull City - Pre Season Friendly

Survival is success for Hull, but given the circumstances and the strife around the club just now, maybe success is simply beating Derby County’s 11 point haul from 2008.

A new manager will at least have a few weeks to bring in some new players, but even if he does manage to bring in new faces, he only has two weeks to get his team ready for the new season. Without a proper pre season, things can go really badly even with the best of squads.

How has the summer gone?

Hull City v Sheffield Wednesday - Sky Bet Football League Championship Play-Off Final

After the high of winning promotion, Hull City fans have been brought straight back down to Earth with an almighty crash.

This should be a time of unbridled optimism. What’s interesting is that recently-relegated Newcastle United fans feel like they are in a wonderful position whilst recently-promoted Hull are in the opposite position. The summer has been that bad.

Key man

Abel Hernandez

At this point, Hull really only have one man to rely on. With so many key players injured, with Mo Diame off to the Championship (!) in search for greener pastures, Hull will surely be relying on Abel Hernandez.

Last season he was a cut above in the Championship, but when Hull last relied on him in the Premier League he didn’t come up with the goods. Will that change this time around?

Make or break season

Grimsby Town v Hull City - Pre Season Friendly

The entire squad are in for a make or break season, to be honest. Players like Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore took a gamble by staying with Hull after their relegation, and you could argue that they’re taking a gamble this season by staying on after promotion. Another relegation would not look good on a CV.

[ad_pod id='writeforus' align='center']