It’s a common cliche that every player in the team a new head coach inherits is given a fresh start in preseason. Hull City under Tim Walter is th
e same.
No matter what a player has accomplished in the past at that particular club, most of that work can be considered irrelevant; however, if a player has had trouble staying consistent, these viewpoints are frequently used as a significant boost to their confidence or to their immediate future in equal measure.
Due in large part to the large number of departures that have already taken place at the MKM Stadium since May, Hull has somewhat adopted this strategy in the run-up to the upcoming campaign, allowing those lower down the hierarchy to stake their claims for a spot in Walter’s first team.
And for one of the players who wasn’t in Liam Rosenior’s plans for the entire 2023–24 season, a strong preseason showing has confirmed the hierarchy’s views regarding their immediate future in the midst of a lot of prior conjecture.
Ryan Longman impressed in Hull City’s friendly vs Fiorentina
That’s in reference to Ryan Longman, the winger for the Tigers, who has been the focus of conflicting opinions from Black and Amber supporters ever since joining from Brighton and Hove Albion. Longman’s loan deal was extended to a permanent deal in January 2024.
Despite not being promoted, the 23-year-old has played a significant role in the 2.Bundesliga during Walter’s tenure. Walter has continued to implement his unique style of play, which has helped Hamburg SV become one of the team’s strongest forces.
With the adaptable Abdus Omur starting on the right side against Fiorentina and Ryan Giles being used in a more advanced role despite Longman’s ability to play on either flank, City currently lack depth on the wings.
But Tuesday night’s match against Serie A team Fiorentina gave fans a really encouraging 45-minute cameo from the player who spent the previous season on loan at Millwall, which led to him tying the score late in the second half for the Tigers.
Longman was also a key player in Walter’s system’s interchanging and creative link-up play, which included players like Abdus Omur, Oscar Estupinan, and Xavier Simons—who was also loaned out to Fleetwood Town last season.
The forward tested Pietro Terracciano’s resolve and his back line on a few occasions before ultimately losing to him due to his direct play, which also caused the Italian side serious problems in central and wide areas.
Pre-season cameos adhere to Tan Kesler’s previous admission
The one thing that has always been in doubt about the former AFC Wimbledon loanee is his consistency in Black and Amber, which occasionally suffered from things like comments made by some fans during a 2-0 away loss to Huddersfield Town in October 2024.
That was actually less than a year after the winger showed off what has probably been his best play while wearing a City shirt. Among those goals were matches against Millwall, Bristol City, Everton, and AFC Bournemouth, the latter of which featured a memorable late winner at the Vitality Stadium against the eventual promotion winners.
If anything, as is often the case with wingers, it demonstrates that Longman is a “confidence player.” He has also demonstrated similar trends of play since Neil Harris assumed management at the Den during the latter part of his loan spell with the South London team. This period of play coincided with an improvement in the team’s record and the winger’s goal of the season against Leicester City, the eventual champions, before the Lions manager made his intentions regarding a permanent deal clear.
Before Tigers CEO Tan Kesler’s assessment of the situation, many did not think that he would spend his future in East Yorkshire, particularly given his close ties to Derby County, Birmingham City, and Wrexham.
“I know Ryan, we acquired him from Brighton with big expectations, so this year should be his year to deliver on the expectations,” Kesler told Hull Live.
“I’ve seen a lot of interest in the media and we’ve had some serious inquiries now as well. I don’t want to sell players, I want them to be better with us and go somewhere with us.”
Whilst no official bids have come in from any of the aforementioned sides, it perhaps wouldn’t be the biggest shock in the world to see any late bids lodged for the winger, given the ever-changing climate of the transfer window so far, in which Hull have fallen victim to themselves.
Derby does currently have an abundance of wingers, but Paul Warne’s team is getting older overall even with the experience that both Tom Barkhuizen and Nathaniel Mende-Laing
zcan bring to the table. Meanwhile, Birmingham’s Chris Davies has been given the task by his own management of assembling a “Championship-ague ready squad in league One,” and the project led by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney has drawn several experienced Championship players to North Wales.
Kesler concludes that, despite the well-documented aspirations of all three of those clubs, Longman is currently a top-tier second-tier performer after such a productive stint away.
“After a fantastic season with Millwall, Ryan is like one of the special players that he needs in my opinion. I’d say it’s his time to deliver and to be confident returning to this team. The CEO of City said, “He should be feeling like a top Championship player and then deliver for us.”
A pivotal season in Ryan Longman’s career awaits
Although t
he wide player from Redhill is on their roster, it’s no secret that Walter is looking for wide reinforcements due to connections to Kasey McAteer and Liam Millar. However, he has more than demonstrated his commitment to playing regularly for the first team during the next ten months.
The 48-year-old head coach has seen many instances of players developing from early glimpses of potential to ultimately reaching their ceilings during his time in Germany, and Longman could be the next big thing in that regard during what is a crucial season for the 23-year-old.
The winger will have felt reassured by Kesler’s recent remarks, but Longman needs to build on these strong preseason performances to give the management serious consideration regarding his long-term future, as his contract at the MKM expires in June.
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