After Saturday’s opening pre-season victory and a day off on Sunday, Hull City’s players were back at their Maribor training ground on Monday to prepare for their next encounter.
Fresh from a comfortable victory over a tepid Konyaspor side, City’s players endured the longest session of their stay so far in Slovenia, and on one of the hottest days.
The Tigers are coming to the end of their stay on the banks of the gorgeous Drava River, and will be heading to the banks of the Bosphorus after Tuesday night’s game against more Turkish Super Lig opposition.
City reporter Barry Cooper is travelling with Sergej Jakirovic and his squad, and delivered his latest update from the camp in Maribor….
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Back at it
After Saturday’s game and a Sunday off for the players, Sergej Jakirovic’s squad were back at their Play Green training centre on Monday to prepare for Rizespor.
City’s players had their final two-hour-plus session in Slovenia, which Matt Crooks described as the toughest yet on another baking hot day.
The majority of the session was focused on 11vs11 on a shortened pitch, with the emphasis on moving the ball quickly, one touch, whilst working in the five-second rule from throw-ins and free-kicks. Marko Salatovic led the first half of the session, with Dean Holden taking the second, and the gaffer interjecting as and when required.
Their intense workout ended with a flurry of running, before they made the short journey back to their hotel for lunch, more gym work and some downtime.
Injury watch
There were some notable absences from the session in the aftermath of Saturday’s friendly victory. Mo Belloumi, Darko Gyabi and Matty Jacob were all back at the hotel and didn’t make it to the Play Green centre, which is about 15 minutes away.
Hidemasa Morita and Charlie Hughes also stayed back at the team’s hotel in the centre of Maribor, as they continue their rehab from their respective injuries.
Abdus Omur, who was forced off in the first half of the win over Konyaspor, did take a full part in training on Monday, while Matt Targett stepped up his involvement, before breaking away for some individual work with the medical staff along with Tyrell Sellars-Fleming. It remains to be seen if Gyabi and Jacob will be involved in the game on Tuesday night against Rizespor, but it’s hoped Belloumi will be.
The young ones
It’s perhaps unrealistic to think too many of City’s young players will get much of a look-in during the Premier League season, aside from the cup competitions, or if there’s major injury trouble.
That said, the likes of Cathal McCarthy, Calvin Okike and Nathan Tinsdale have looked good. McCarthy and Tinsdale impressed in the Konyaspor victory, and on Monday, Tinsdale looked really good in training.
Some of his defensive work, racing to win the ball back, was bright, and he scored a fine goal with a clever header back across the goal. Tinsdale has spent a couple of years on the fringes of the first team, but has been unable to break into the first team fold once the signings have started to arrive.
That will likely be the case again this season; however, you think he’s ready for a really good loan in the EFL, where he can go and play 40-plus games and get that body of work under his belt.
One more to go
That’s it for training. Monday was City’s final training session in Slovenia. Attention now turns towards the game against Rizespor at Maribor’s Ljudski vrt Stadium on Tuesday night.
The players who played an hour at the weekend will now play half an hour, so the finishing team will likely start the match, which kicks off at 5:30pm, back at home.
City had planned to face Galatasaray across the border in Austria, but will now tackle the side who finished eighth, a place above Saturday’s opponents, and the Tigers will be hoping for a much sterner test than they got on Saturday.
After Tuesday night’s game under the lights, City’s travelling party will head off to Istanbul on Wednesday, ready for the second leg of their European trip.
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