Hull City’s pre-season training camp in Slovenia is underway, after the players and staff arrived in Maribor on Monday afternoon.
City’s players have two games in the Slovenian mountains, before heading home via a four-day spell in Istanbul, where they’ll have their third outing of the summer.
Sergej Jakirovic’s men headed out from Humberside Airport on Monday morning, ready to undergo a gruelling spell of work in preparation for the opening weekend of the Premier League season.
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Here’s a look at Day One
All relaxed on the flight out
It doesn’t seem like five minutes since we were gathered at Humberside Airport ready to depart for Turkey 12 months ago, and yet, here we are again.
Who could have foreseen what that period would deliver when we departed for Riva a little over 12 months ago, but fast forward, the City squad that gathered in the departures hall are now preparing for life in the Premier League.
Unlike in previous seasons, there were no fans on the flight out; it was just the players, staff and the club’s media, along with one member of the local media, yours truly.
A pleasant location
City’s hotel is right on the banks of the Drava River, in a city centre location which is ideal for the players to get out and about and explore the city.
The training centre is just over a 10-minute bus ride from the hotel, so it is therefore in easy reach. It’s a very different feel to Riva, where the players are based at the training ground. While a purpose-built facility, it can become very suffocating when you’re eating, sleeping, training, playing and relaxing in the same place.
Maribor is very different, and that promises to be perfect for the players, who have been given the Maribor FC team coach for the duration of their trip.
No rest for the wicked
The Tigers’ players had a couple of hours at their leisure following their late afternoon arrival at their hotel for the next week or so, before having an evening training session.
Jakirovic’s squad had quite an intense workout in their 7pm session at the Play Green Resort, hidden well away in the trees. The high-octane game they finished with on a tight, compact pitch was fascinating to watch.
A standing ovation
Arguably, the moment of the game came from Kieran Dowell when he took the ball out of the sky before unleashing a fizzing volley over the top of Dillon Phillips, who had absolutely no chance of saving it.
It was a real moment of quality, and drew loud applause from the backroom staff gathered on the side of the pitch, so good was it.
More manageable temperatures
Although the players trained early in the evening, the drop in temperature was noticeable, and this is exactly why Jakirovic wanted to come to Slovenia.
Even in the heat of the day, Maribor is much more manageable compared to Istanbul at this time of year, and that will be welcome for the players when they get their training schedule underway properly on Tuesday morning.
Hull Live will be the only English media with City during every step of their pre-season tour, and you can follow all our updates in print and online.
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