Hull City head coach Nigel Adkins has warned that the side may have to be patient when we face Reading this weekend.
Jaap Stam’s side are four points ahead of us in the Championship table and Adkins is certainly expecting a tough test when they visit the KCOM Stadium this weekend.
Speaking to the Official Site as he met with the media for his pre game press conference, Adkins explained.
‘We`ve got 20 league games to go and they are all like cup finals. The next one is the most important one and we need the supporters to get behind everybody. It will be a challenging game. Reading under Jaap Stam average over 60 per cent possession and they`re number one in the division when it comes to keeping possession.’
Adkins went on to say.
‘We have to make sure that we get our defensive side right because there could be long spells when Reading keep hold of the ball. It`s important that the crowd understand that we have to be patient with how we play, and we have to make sure that we utilise the ball well when we have it. We have to keep building on the confidence that is growing from recent performances, the resilience that has been demonstrated and the chances that we are creating because we are creating a lot. The attitude, the behaviours, the application, the commitment of the players and staff have been superb and we`re looking to keep building on that.’
Adkins of course is coming up against a former club in the shape of Reading as he managed them back between March 2013 and December 2014.
‘It`s a club that I`ve been at previously and that I know well so I`m looking forward to seeing some familiar faces, but I`m loving being here at Hull City now. I`m very proud of the spell I had at Reading to keep the football club going after it nearly went out of existence. I had nine academy players in the side and we missed out on the Championship play-offs with the last kick of the final game. I enjoyed my time there, but I`m at Hull City now and relishing this opportunity. We`re in a position in the division that we need to get out of. The confidence that is growing from recent performances gives us a platform from which we can build, but we need to pick up points now and victories that will move us away and further up the table.’
The Hull Daily Mail have him talking about the January transfer window as well.
Confirming that some bids are in for players and some progress is being made, he also said we wouldn’t be making an offer for Peterborough United’s Jack Marriott even though he’s a fan of the 23 year old striker.
‘Marriott at Peterborough is a very good player and yes we would have looked at him but he`s not on our list. We have watched him but we`re not going to make a bid. We have made bids, there`s negotiations in place as we speak, I won`t name names. There`s still the whole of the window and I would like to do it as quick as we can. We need a central defender and a wide player to strengthen the squad.’
He ended by saying.
‘There are bids on the table and negotiations are backwards and forwards. The ones that we have bids on the table for are not Premier League players. We`ve put bids in with a desire to get the deals done. We`ve all experienced the domino effect in the January window but we all want to do well.’
