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СпутникиРНSpaceXРоскосмосNASAHull City are preparing to embark on their first Premier League season since 2017 after last year’s promotion and their owner Acun Ilicali has not been afraid to discuss their plans in the transfer market
13:49, 31 Jul 2026Updated 13:59, 31 Jul 2026
Hull boss Acun Ilicali has accused Real Madrid of making up ‘fake stories’ after the Tigers reportedly went head-to-head with the Spanish giants for striker Carlos Espi. The Yorkshire side are deep in preparations for their Premier League return, having sealed promotion under Sergej Jakirović.
They have already been busy in the transfer market, albeit are still keen on adding a new forward to their ranks. Hull had identified Levante forward Carlos Espi as an option, albeit were beaten to the punch by Real Madrid, who swooped in to activate his €25million release clause.
It was previously reported that Hull had tabled an offer for the striker, albeit owner Iliaci has clarified that is not the case.
Taking to social media, he wrote: “Guys your club is big enough without making fake stories about Hull City. We never made any offer, we wish him the best in Real Madrid.”
Iliaci’s jibe at Real Madrid is not the first time that he has spoken out on Hull’s summer business. After growing irritated with speculation surrounding his side, he wrote: “Dear Hull City family, We are reading dozens of false transfer rumours in many places.
“We are disturbed by the claims that we have been rejected and by the use of our club's name to gain attention. We have been working intensively for two months.
“I believe we will build a team that we will all be proud of. To prevent false speculation and to give you more information, I am leaving you with our latest transfer situation, which includes some clues.”
The 57-year-old then followed that up with a series of national flag emojis, accompanied by percentages to signify how close various deals were. Hull have already completed four signings this summer, with Jack Butland, Hidemasa Morita, Matt Targett and Oscar Zambrano having joined the club, while Olympiacos goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis is expected to arrive soon.
Hull have also taken out a £55m bridging loan, a move that has been criticised by some. But Ilicali believes it will give his side the best chance of competing throughout the coming season.
He said: “Why is it strange? We want this club to be financially strong to be able to make transfers.
"I respect that everyone is talking about this loan but, at the end of the day, what we are trying to do is be in a strong financial position so that we can spend money when we need to.
"This club was supported with money from my company for four years. All I can ask is for our fans to not worry about any of the financial things. We can loan money and spend money. They should be confident that we are going to use the money in Hull City.
"All we have done is take the money that we are going to get anyway a bit sooner, so that we can be stronger in the transfer market. We will use it for the club's benefit. We need to make good transfers this summer so we need more money now.
"We have to be strong in the Premier League. It takes around two to three weeks to get some transfers [over the line] so we have to move quickly. In order to be quick, we need the money in advance."
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