Hull City players all working '˜extremely hard' against club's turbulent backdrop

HULL CITY head coach Nigel Adkins insists it is business as usual on the football front despite the continuing uncertainty over a possible takeover.

But the Tigers chief has also admitted that the lack of a resolution either way before the turn of the year could seriously impact on the club’s plans to strengthen once the transfer window opens in January.

The Allam family, the club’s owners since December 2010, are in talks with three parties over a potential buyout.

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A consortium of Saudi investors led by former chairman Paul Duffen is understood to be furthest down the line towards a deal that club officials told a supporters’ meeting earlier this week could be “completed by Christmas”.

Hull City's head coach Nigel Adkins (Picture: Simon Bellis/Sportimage).Hull City's head coach Nigel Adkins (Picture: Simon Bellis/Sportimage).
Hull City's head coach Nigel Adkins (Picture: Simon Bellis/Sportimage).

But sources have indicated to The Yorkshire Post that several hurdles still remain before a takeover can be completed by any of the bidders, the others being the Supporters Trust-backed SportyCo and a US-based consortium.

For Adkins, the priority is tomorrow’s visit of West Bromwich Albion and the quest for a victory that could lift Hull out of the relegation zone.

“I can’t affect it,” he said when asked about a takeover saga that took a fresh twist this week when one report claimed the Allam family had been saying their ‘goodbyes’ to staff at the KCOM Stadium following last Saturday’s rugby league international between England and New Zealand.

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“That is the simple answer to it. It has been going on since probably when I was (manager) at Scunthorpe. It has been going on for a long period of time.

“How does it affect us? The day-to-day running here at the training ground in Cottingham is good. Everyone works extremely hard.

“Will it affect us in the January window? Potentially because that is the window that is coming up where you want to get sorted out.

“But I can’t affect it so I will just concentrate on the players. You can see that they are all working extremely hard.”

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Hull head into the Albion clash buoyed by last weekend’s victory at Bolton Wanderers, only their third of the season.

The three points were not enough to escape the drop zone, but the tonic of beating a relegation rival was much needed.

Adkins added: “From our point of view we believed the result was coming. Our performances have been good. We have played all the top teams – like Middlesbrough, Leeds and Sheffield United – and those games could have gone either way.

“We know that the next game will be different, it is Premier League players from last season. Let us not underestimate that. They possess many, many threats.”

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Adkins, in his 12th year of management in the top four divisions of English football, will come up against a relative rookie tomorrow in Darren Moore.

The former Bradford City defender took temporary charge at The Hawthorns last April and then got the job on a permanent basis during the summer.

“The big man has done well,” said Adkins ahead of a clash that will also see former Tigers defender Wayne Jacobs in the away technical area.

“I have spent some time with him on (coaching) courses over the years and known him a long time.

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“He was at West Brom behind the scenes for a long, long time. But until you are given the opportunity then you never know. Darren got that chance. He went in and galvanised the football club at a very important stage.

“He nearly kept them up. Graeme Jones, who was obviously with Roberto (Martinez) at the World Cup with Belgium, has gone to join them as well.

“There is a good bit of knowledge there behind the scenes.”