With the departure of Jacob Greaves leaving a significant void in Hull City's backline, the Tigers are already making moves to get a replacement through the door.
Greaves leaves City to become a Tractor Boy
Whilst the early passages of the summer window have seen numerous exits from the MKM Stadium, none have hit quite as hard as that of Jacob Greaves.
After 177 senior appearances in black and amber, the 23-year-old has called time on his Tigers career moving to Premier League new-boys Ipswich Town. A reported fee in the region of £15million was enough to prise Greaves away from East Yorkshire as he looks to start a new chapter in England's topflight.
Ever present throughout the previous few seasons, Greaves will leave some big boots to fill at the heart of the Tigers' defence. Whilst Sean McLoughlin will likely step up in some capacity, the Tigers appear to be on the lookout for a new name to take the defender's place.
With the funds from Greaves' fee ready to be reinvested, it appears that Acun Ilicali and Co have already put a bid in for a highly-rated young defender.
Tigers target a move for Wigan defender
As first reported by journalist Alan Nixon and later relayed by the local press, Hull City are targeting a move for Wigan Athletic's Charlie Hughes. It is claimed that the Tigers have had their eyes on the defender for some time and have submitted a bid in the region of £4.5million for the 20-year-old.
A later report by Wigan Today's Paul Kendrick confirmed the bid, describing the Tigers' interest in the player as 'very genuine'. Whilst Kendrick goes on to state that the deal is not done yet by any means the journalist does confess that the transfer is moving in the right direction.
The central defender first joined Wigan at Under 15s level following spells with both Liverpool and Manchester City. Despite struggling to make an impression at England's top sides, Hughes has quickly risen up the Latics' ranks to become one of their most prized assets.
At just twenty years of age, Hughes already has 75 senior appearances for the Latics under his belt and has captained his side on numerous occasions. Last season saw the defender feature in all but a handful of Wigan's games as the Lancashire outfit finished comfortably mid-table in League One.
Hughes' exploits in the North West saw him catch the eye of the England national team with the defender called up to the Three Lions' Under 20s squad for the first time back in October 2023.
With Hughes now an important part of the Latics' side, the 20-year-old pen a new deal last summer, set to keep him at the club until 2028. Speaking at the time, former Tiger and current Wigan manager Shaun Maloney waxed lyrical about the defender's quality:
“Not only is he a talented footballer, but Charlie is a dedicated young man and a brilliant character. We are all excited to see what the future holds for Charlie and look forward to supporting him in the years to come.”
Whilst Wigan will no doubt be reluctant to let Hughes leave this summer, the Tigers could use their newfound windfall from Greaves to make an offer too good for the Latics to turn down.
Can Charlie Hughes replace Greaves at Hull City?
In a purely narrative sense, many parallels can be drawn between the respective careers of Hughes and Greaves. Both rose to prominence as teenagers, establishing themselves as first-team regulars before going on to captain their respective sides.
The duo also match up well in regard to their abilities as players. A glance at the pair's stats from last season shows two defensively astute players with no shortage of talent with the ball at their feet.
Whilst Greaves performs slightly betters than his Wigan counterpart in regard to pure defensive output, there are a couple of areas of Hughes' game that dwarf the numbers put up by the former Hull man.
Firstly, Hughes appears far more comfortable running with ball at his feet, boasting almost 20 more dribbles than Greaves with a far higher rate of success. With new City manager Tim Walter wanting fast flowing attacking football, having a centre back who can progress the ball up the pitch will be a massive plus for the incoming German.
The 20-year-old's unique abilities to start attacks is also shown in the amount of long range passes he completes per game. With the Tigers side of last season characterised by a failure to break down low defensive lines, having a central defender who can spray the ball long could be the secret to unlocking tricky defences.
With Hughes' abilities on the ball clear for all to see, it may leave some of the Tigers faithful fearful that the 20-year-old lacks the hallmarks of a traditional central defender.
Standing at a little over 6 foot tall, Hughes is not quite the totemic presence of Greaves but he is still not shy of doing the dirty work associated with his position. The 20-year-old completed the fifth most blocks in League One last season, showing that he is not afraid of putting his body on the line to prevent his side conceding.
As a natural right footer, the question remains as to how comfortable Hughes would be slotting into Greaves' position on the left side of a defensive pairing. Regardless of this, the 20-year-old is a player who should be able to replace the leadership and quality that fans came to expect from Greaves during his time in East Yorkshire.
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