Hull City will continue their preparations for their 2024-25 Championship campaign with a pre-season friendly against League Two outfit Doncaster Rovers on Tuesday night.
The Tigers will enter the contest off the back of a 5-1 defeat to Fenerbahce, while Doncaster recorded a 2-0 victory over Spennymoor Town in their last friendly encounter.
Match preview
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Hull appointed Tim Walter as their head coach at the end of May, with the German having his first taste of English football with the Tigers, and it will be fascinating to see how he performs during his time at the club.
The Championship outfit opened their preparations for the new campaign with a 1-1 draw against Kasimpasa on July 13, before suffering a 5-1 defeat to Fenerbahce last time out.
The Tigers have three more friendlies in the diary after this one, tackling Newcastle United, Fiorentina and Reading, before beginning their 2024-25 Championship campaign against Bristol City on August 10.
Hull finished seventh in the Championship last season, just three points off the playoff positions, and they will be looking to make another push for the top six during the upcoming campaign, but it will be incredibly difficult considering the players that have left this summer.
The club have made just one signing so far, with Ryan Giles arriving from Luton Town, but Jacob Greaves, Jaden Philogene and Ozan Tufan have been notable exits.
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Doncaster, meanwhile, finished fifth in League Two last season, which saw them qualify for the playoffs, but they were beaten by Crewe Alexandra in the semi-finals.
Rovers will be expecting to be pushing for promotion once again in the coming campaign, and there have been positive signs in the early stages of pre-season.
Indeed, Grant McCann's side beat Darlington 1-0 in their opener on July 20 before recording a 2-0 victory over Spennymoor Town last time out.
Doncaster will tackle Middlesbrough and Rotherham United in their final two friendlies of the summer before opening their League Two campaign against Accrington Stanley on August 10.
Rovers have been busy this summer, making seven signings, including Billy Sharp, so the 38-year-old is set to take on the club that he left at the end of last season on Tuesday.
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Team News
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Sharp previously represented Doncaster between 2010 and 2012, while he has also had two loan spells at the club, so he is certainly familiar with the surroundings at the South Yorkshire outfit.
The experienced forward is likely to be in the XI against the club that he left last season, while Jordan Gibson, who has arrived from Carlisle United, is also set to start.
Head coach McCann will again be looking to use his full squad in this match, while there are likely to be opportunities for a number of the younger players to make their mark.
As for Hull, there will be no Greaves or Philogene, with the former completing a big-money move to Ipswich, while the latter has secured a return to Aston Villa.
Giles is the only incoming at the club this summer, and he is expected to be in the XI for this match, potentially from the first whistle, before changes occur at the interval.
Hull have actually lost their two leading goalscorers from last season, with Tufan also departing, so there could be a start for Oscar Estupinan, who spent last term out on loan.
Doncaster Rovers possible starting lineup:
Jones; McGrath, Anderson, Wood, Maxwell; Bailey, Clifton, Close; Gibson, Sharp, Miller
Hull City possible starting lineup:
Pandur; Jones, Smith, McLoughlin, Giles; Seri, Simons, Omur; Longman, Estupinan, Sinik
We say: Doncaster Rovers 1-1 Hull City
Hull desperately need to make some attacking additions due to the quality that they have lost this summer, and we are backing League Two Doncaster to claim a draw against their Championship opponents on Tuesday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
