Hull City’s head of recruitment, Martin Hodge, says the club will have to spend every penny wisely in the transfer market this summer to make sure they get the best value for money.
Hodge, along with sporting director Jared Dublin and the rest of the club’s small army of recruitment staff, is busy plotting moves that can help Sergej Jakirovic’s squad ahead of their return to the Premier League.
While City are on course to bank in excess of £200m following promotion last month at Wembley, the Tigers will still need to be savvy in the congested market, which opens on Monday, with owner Acun Ilicali again ready to back his manager.
Already, the club are being linked with a host of names from across Europe and beyond, and that will only gather pace as the summer wears on, and interest in the Tigers is growing all the time.
The former Burnley recruitment chief says whether City spend £100m on new faces, or £50m, they will need to make sure that the players coming in supplement the group that worked so tirelessly in getting the Tigers promoted against all the odds.
“I think the problem is that the expectations will be that we’re going to sign people that we can’t afford, and I think we’ve got to trust some of these boys, add a bit of nucleus to the squad,” Hodge told Hull Live.
“It’s a squad game, and as you’ve seen all season, you’ve never known our team because it’s never the same team twice, so I think we’ll have to build, we’ll get a bit more athleticism in because you know what the Premier League’s like.
“But do you know what? I think Sunderland have spent £200m, that’s what it takes to stay in the division, so I don’t think we’re going to get anywhere near that. I think we’ll get £100m (to spend), I don’t know, I’m only guessing, but if we get half of it, we’ve got to spend it wisely.”
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Perhaps unsurprisingly, Hodge and Dublin’s phones were red hot in the immediate aftermath of their 1-0 win over Middlesbrough on May 23, and that has continued since with agents from across the globe trying to get their players a move.
“On the Saturday night after we’d won the game, I’ve already got agents texting me, not well done, ‘I’ve got a player for you here’, and it saddens me a little bit,” Hodge continued. “Yes, they’re trying to do you a favour, but some are trying to line their pockets as well.
“What we’ve got to be careful we don’t get drawn into the auction war where we pay over the odds. We’ve got to get some extra bodies in for the squad.”
The key now for Hodge, who has relished his first season at the MKM Stadium, is to add carefully to Jakirovic’s squad, to ensure the blend is right and makes the most of the quality already in the dressing room.
“This squad and this management, it’s been an absolute pleasure (to work with), and I don’t do emotion. People will tell you I never do,” Hodge admitted. “You’re lucky if I break a smile, but this has been one of the best weekends I’ve ever had in football.
“And don’t forget, with Wales, I went to the World Cup, I went to the Euros, and I’ve had the time of my life. This is right up there. It is a special group, but it’s a special group that’s been put together for a purpose, so let’s build on it.”
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