Mike Phelan to make changes for Hull's EFL Cup tie against Stoke

20 September 2016 12:31

Hull fans can expect to see the fruits of the club's belated transfer window trolley dash as Mike Phelan rings the changes for the EFL Cup trip to Stoke.

Phelan has named the same starting XI for all five of his club's Premier League outings to date but a third-round visit to the Bet365 Stadium represents the perfect chance to rest some weary legs and blood new faces.

After dragging their feet for the majority of the summer, to former boss Steve Bruce's chagrin, the Tigers finally bolstered a paper-thin squad at the 11th hour and Phelan has now got options at his disposal.

The club's record signing Ryan Mason, who arrived from Tottenham in a deal that could be worth up to £13million, has had to make do with two substitute appearances but will now expect to get the run of the midfield.

In attack Abel Hernandez and Adama Diomande have been shouldering the burden, but Phelan has a chance to pair former Manchester United prospect Will Keane with loanee Dieumerci Mbokani, the latter having won a consolation penalty at Arsenal on Saturday.

In the previous round, a 3-1 win at Exeter, Phelan retained more first-teamers than he ideally wanted to and will not have his hand forced this time.

"We took on Exeter with a side made up mainly of players who had been involved the previous Saturday," Phelan told the club's official website.

"Now we have a group of players who need games. We have six new players compared to when we played in the last round, plus a few others who need games and we'll pick a team to face the challenge of Stoke.

"The players have committed themselves really well up to this point, but we have to have a look at them physically now and try and recharge.

"It's down to me now as to who starts"

While Mason, Keane and Mbokani have all appeared from the bench in the past couple of weeks, fellow newcomers David Marshall, James Weir and Markus Henriksen have all been confined to a watching brief.

That should also change, with Marshall most obviously bidding for a regular start.

The 31-year-old Scotland international is unlikely to have left Cardiff for life on the sidelines at the KCOM Stadium and a solid showing in the Potteries could be the start of a lengthy run in the side, with Eldin Jakupovic vulnerable.

Phelan will also continue to lean on the under-23 set-up too.

Josh Tymon, Jarrod Bowen and Greg Olley also lined up against Exeter in the second round and look certain to be involved on some level after being rested from Monday's Development League meeting with Crystal Palace.

"I'm confident enough to go with different players and I don't just mean the players that we've brought into the club," said Phelan. "There are others who have shown plenty of willing from our under-23s, so we will promote a few of those as well."

Source: PA-WIRE