”Gives them an opportunity” - Don Goodman offers Hull City promotion hope despite exit talk | OneFootball

The Sky Sports pundit has had his say on the Tigers' prospects under Tim Walter

Highlights

Don Goodman believes that the landscape of the upcoming Championship presents Hull City with an opportunity to challenge at the top end of the table.

In recent seasons, there has been a major upward shift in league positions at the MKM Stadium which resulted in a seventh-place finish last term, but that still left many supporters and chairman Acun Ilicali feeling a tinge of disappointment, given the calibre of squad at the club's disposal.

Tim Walter has since taken over from Liam Rosenior, with the German continuing to express his intense methods to a somewhat depleted squad in terms of numbers this pre-season, with the Tigers currently at the Turkish FA's headquarters in Riva on a training camp.

A number of high-profile players departed at the end of their loan spells, whilst the likes of Jaden Philogene and Jacob Greaves' expected exits from East Yorkshire have been the main talking points surrounding City at this moment in time.

Don Goodman issues promotion hope for Hull City

Whilst referring to last season's frustrating ending, Goodman believes there is a good chance Hull can progress further this season, despite the mass turnover expected between now and the end of the transfer window.

Via OLBG, he said: "It was a shock to me when he was sacked after Hull City missed out on the play-offs by just three points and finished seventh. During the second half of the season, they struggled to get a natural striker on the pitch with Liam Delap and Aaron Connolly suffering injury problems."

"Had Liam Delap stayed fit, for instance, I would have backed Hull to have finished in the top six. But the owner has his views and wants them to be entertaining to watch and, perhaps, didn't appreciate the patient and possession-based build-up," Goodman added.

"I don't know much about Tim Walter but I believe he wants to produce a high-energy team that plays on the front foot. Who doesn't want that? But is it going to get results? We'll have to wait and see."

Sky Sports pundit weighs in on Philogene, Greaves exit sagas

It has been reported on Thursday morning that the aforementioned Greaves has completed a medical with Ipswich Town ahead of a move to the Premier League newcomers, whilst Philogene has linked up with the rest of Walter's squad in Türkiye for now, as per Barry Cooper of Hull Live.

That's whilst Aston Villa are said to be in "pole position" for striking a deal with their former academy graduate who was Hull's top scorer with 12 last season after joining the Tigers for £5m 10 months ago.

Substantial fees are to be expected for the pair, with Goodman stating that whilst it will be a blow to lose such quality, if Acun Ilicali can re-invest the money wisely, Hull have a chance of competing this season in what he believes, is a weaker standard of division compared to last season.

"Acun Ilıcalı has good intentions and his heart is in the right place. He wants to build the football club for the fans and does some fantastic things like funding coaches for away fans and paying for supporters' drinks at home games," the pundit continued.

"You'd suspect their squad will look a lot different when the season starts to the one that they finished last season with. I'm not sure how hands-on Acun Ilıcalı is when it comes to recruitment. We might see some Turkish players come in after they had a brilliant Euros, it's hard to say.

The 58-year-old concluded : "They're going to lose two of their best players, but you know the owner is very ambitious and, providing profit and sustainability allows, you'd expect funds to be reinvested for the new manager. Recruitment defines how successful a manager will be. If Hull get it wrong, they'll end up even further away from where they want to be."

Tim Walter's rebuilding task in East Yorkshire

In what is the 48-year-old's first venture into Championship management, a rebuild and many additions are needed if he can emulate his compatriots' - Daniel Farke and David Wagner - recent success at this level after coming into the division as relative novices and unknown quantities.

Aside from Philogene and Greaves, there is still uncertainty regarding the future of Ryan Giles after a £4m obligation to buy was recently ratified despite strong interest from Middlesbrough, whilst the smooth midfield operator - Jean Michael Seri - is believed to be a target for sides in the Saudi Pro League.

The striking department is one area which is extremely low on bodies at present given the departures of Delap, Connolly, Billy Sharp and Noah Ohio, but Walter has slowly begun to rectify such issues after recently recalling Oscar Estupinan from Brazilian outfit Bahia, where the Colombian scored eight times in 21 appearances.

Ilicali has already declared that City must be shrewd in their spending capacity after last season's activity, but that is the right approach to take - albeit slightly slower than some supporters are hoping for in terms of incomings - as the spotlight will continue to rain down on the Tigers this upcoming season.