Leeds United v Hull City: Jean Michael Seri sounds warning to teammates ahead of Elland Road visit

Liam Rosenior’s men have veered off course in the Championship promotion race, hitting speedbumps when they need to be accelerating towards the finish line.

A 2-0 defeat to Stoke City compounded the side’s problems, leaving them winless in five league games and pushing them down to ninth in the table.

With Hull’s form hardly inspiring, the prospect of a trip to Leeds is a daunting one.

Midfield schemer Seri has been around the block and at 32, is one of the most experienced heads in the Hull dressing room.

He is an African Cup of Nations winner who has played in the Premier League and in top flights across Europe. The Ivorian is likely to be among Hull’s least fazed figures when faced with the Elland Road roar, although has warned his team-mates mistakes will be punished.

“(Leeds are a) good team, (with) good players,” he said. “What we're going to face there, is the kind of game where if you lose the ball, they're going to punish us.

"What you have to do is take care of the ball and be able to play. Don't be afraid – move, play, make those runs. If you go there knowing you're going to wait for the moment, they're going to wait for our mistakes.

"If we make mistakes, they punish us. We just have to recognise we're going to face a team that have good players up front. If we make one mistake, they're going to punish us. That's it.

"They're not the type of team who are going to kick the ball long and play for second balls. They're going to play because they have quality players on the pitch. What we have to do is respond, analyse them and play to meet them. It's going to be a good game, but if we want to win, we know what we have to do.”

Hull’s underwhelming home form would suggest an away trip may be welcomed by the Tigers but Seri is adamant the venue is irrelevant for Rosenior’s men when it comes to preparation.

He said: “It's not about playing home or playing away. When we analyse one team, we just have to put the basics right. We play against teams who, for example, just want to close the ball, who just want to wait for our mistakes, to go into position. We just have to switch on and recognise that this team, they want to go in position, foul, to close the ball, to fight and score, which happened today.

"The Championship is about this type of team. We don't face every team who wants to play. When we play against teams who want to play, we are so much better. But in this league, there is not many teams who want to play. There are some teams who want to kick the ball forward and play second ball, so we have to switch on in every aspect and every moment in the game.”

Leeds are blessed with a plethora of attacking options and even the sturdiest of Championship defences have struggled against the Whites this season.

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However, Hull can be surgical themselves when on form and Seri has challenged his team-mates to block out the fear factor and control the game against their heavily-fancied opponents.

He said: “They're going to attack in the first 15 minutes. What do you have to do? Take the ball from them. If you play against a team who want to attack in the first 15 minutes, you just have to keep the ball. Make them runs and make it count against them. Only in this way can you win this type of game. You cannot be afraid to play.”

Leeds did not enjoy a particularly Good Friday either, as a 2-2 draw with Watford allowed Ipswich Town to move top of the Championship.

The Whites remained second, kept in an automatic promotion slot by Leicester City’s 1-0 defeat to Bristol City.

Hull are arguably getting Daniel Farke’s side at a good time, following a gruelling international break for the Leeds players who travelled to represent their respective countries.

Tigers head coach Rosenior will need an emphatic response from his players nonetheless and he has insisted his players have come out swinging before.

He said: “What I'd say about this group is that every time questions have been asked, every time it feels like we're in a major setback, they come out swinging.

"They've done that for me in my 18 months here, so what a game to show what we're about as characters and what we're about as people. I'm looking forward to the test because it's going to be a massive test going away to Leeds.”