City to miss out on Muriqi?
LAZIO striker Vedat Muriqi is unlikely to join Hull City this month despite the Tigers being keen on signing the Kosovo international in a bid to solve their attacking problems.
Muriqi is understood to be open to a move to the Championship club once Acun Ilicali’s £30m takeover is completed, but the Mail understands the Italian Serie A giants want to recoup near to the 17.5m euros (£14.5m) they paid Fenerbahce for his services in summer 2020.
City want the player on loan in January before potentially committing to a permanent move in the summer once their Championship status has been secured.
Lazio are not interested in a temporary move for Muriqi, who has fallen down the pecking order at the Stadio Olimpico, and will only consider a full sale.
Goals have been hard to come by for City this season with just 20 scored - the third lowest in the division.
Prior to the win at Barnsley early last month, they were the lowest scorers in the entire EFL having scored just nine in their opening 16 games, so it should come as little surprise to see the forward ranks being bolstered. Those problems were laid bare again on New Year’s Day when Grant Mccann’s men passed up a number of gilt-edged chances to lose 1-0 to a Gary Madine penalty at Blackpool.
Adding to City’s forward ranks is top of Ilicali’s priority list once his purchase of the East Yorkshire club goes through, which it’s hoped will be completed this week ahead of Saturday night’s FA Cup tie with Everton. Speaking after Saturday’s loss at Bloomfield Road, Mccann said the ongoing takeover situation was not having an impact on the club’s transfer work.
“Absolutely we can,” said Mccann when asked by BBC Radio Humberside if he’s able to look at players and plan for new arrivals. “It’s business as usual and that’s the way we’ve been going about our daily routines and we’re very much ahead of the game. “We’ve been planning for January for probably two or three months, so we’re looking forward to the window opening.”