Slater welcomes Tigers midfield competition as he approaches milestone moment with Hull
That Regan Slater will make his 200th Hull City appearance slightly against the odds on Saturday is an example to his team-mates.
Slater is a reliable and unheralded player a succession of managers seem to think they can do without, only to realise they cannot.
In seven transfer windows after he joined permanently in January 2022, Hull signed 25 central midfielders of different descriptions.
The 26-year-old has seen off or partnered all of them, yet he insists the competition for places does nothing to drive him on – that is just professional pride.
“You've got to up your game, but I don't feel like I need someone to come in to give me that kick,” argues Slater ahead of Saturday's game at Queens Park Rangers. “I'll always work as hard as I can each day. My mindset doesn't really change.
“I just want to do my best, I just think it's on me. They could bring whoever in, but if you're playing well at the time, then it's your shirt.”
Sergej Jakirovic fell into the same trap as some of his predecessors as Hull coach by pushing Slater towards the back of the queue when he joined in this summer, followed by midfielders John Lundstram, Darko Gyabi and Amir Hadziahmetovic. He loved the response.
“He is a very good example,” says Jakirovic. “In the beginning of the season, he was fourth or fifth option in midfield and now he's first or second option.”
Slater has started the last seven Championship games, a run which began when Gyabi, Lundstram, Hadziahmetovic and Matt Crooks were all fit and available.
“He's a main player because he deserves everything on the pitch,” explains Jakirovic. “Every training (session) he gives his maximum.
“He deserves to play and right now he is with Crooksy (Matt Crooks) in midfield. If you train well, you play.
“You cannot just switch on, switch off. (You cannot think) ‘I will be lazy on the training, then when I get the chance, I will do everything and play well.’ No, you will not play well.”
So it is entirely in character how Slater views the fixtures ahead, even down to the phrase he uses to describe QPR, Ipswich Town and Stoke City on Saturday, Tuesday and the following Saturday. Most in the game call it a “three-game week” to kick off 11 matches in 43 days.
Asked if he will pace himself, Slater replies: “I don't think you can afford to do that. You've got to be at it every single game. I love a two-game week because if you're playing, you're not really training anyway.
“I love it when the games are coming thick and fast.”
Hull's injury list should start to ease in the coming weeks, although Jakirovic says his fit-again players cannot bank on coming straight back into the team.
“Mo (Belloumi) is with us, Lunny (Lundstram) we are expecting next week, Oli McBurnie against Stoke, then there is just Liam (Millar) maybe Millwall, December 13 – this is the target,” he explains.
“Lunny will be with us from Monday, he could play against Ipswich and Stoke City.
“Oli McBurnie has therapy right now (after a calf injury) and he is indoor all the time with the physios. He was on the pitch three weeks ago and he tried to push for Norwich then he felt it again so we needed to slow down with his recovery.
“We need a good – I would call it intro – so that (the injured players) will be back in shape. They are not robots, they will need time, so we have to be cautious.
“These players we are missing if they are healthy, they are the first 11 players. This is not secret.
“But also I respect the other players because they used their chance in this competition (for places).”