Hull City takeover on hold until September

The Tigers have been in talks with several parties over the past month, the front-runner still considered to be a US-based consortium led by former Goldman Sachs managing director Peter Grieve despite strong recent interest from China and Thailand.

Confidentiality clauses mean details are limited but the club’s decision to delay further negotiations is believed to be down to a desire to instead focus solely on strengthening Steve Bruce’s squad.

If talks over a possible takeover were still on-going, all decisions on transfers would have to be agreed by both the current owners and the group closing in on a £100m purchase of the club. By putting talks on hold until after the transfer window closes on August 31, the Tigers are now free to press on with any recruitment plans.

City, one of only four Premier League clubs yet to make a signing this summer, are understood to be closing in on deals to sign free agent Hal Robson-Kanu and Bordeaux defender Lamine Sane.

Speaking to this newspaper at Hull’s warm weather training camp earlier this week, Bruce said: “Recruitment is going to be key and we need five or six new signings.

“It is always difficult when the players have known a manager for two or three years because it can go stale. You need that freshness. And you get that from either a new batch of players or a change of manager.

“I need to keep the players on their toes.

“I understand the clamour of supporters (for signings). So are my players. They are looking to me, as if to say, ‘When are we going to bring anyone in?’ We will do that.”