Hull City owner Acun Ilicali is confident that his team will be able to retain the services of Jaden Philogene, regardless of whether the Tigers achieve promotion to the Premier League.
The Humberside-based team secured the signing of the talented winger at the end of the summer transfer window for a fee believed to be around £5 million. It was an acquisition which was seen as a major coup for the Championship side, which has been backed up by some eye-catching performances over the course of the season.
The 22-year-old has eight goals and six assists in 23 appearances this season, with his form earning him a call-up to the England under-21 team. He started the 5-1 win over Azerbaijan on Friday night, bagging a goal whilst also providing another assist to add to his impressive campaign.
Unsurprisingly, Premier League clubs are beginning to circle, with former club Villa and Tottenham Hotspur both linked in recent weeks. The West Midlands side do hold a £15 million buy-back clause which they inserted in his transfer last summer, although that will only come into play should Hull find themselves playing in the top tier next season.
Tigers owner Ilicali isn’t concerned though, citing the fact the Philogene is happy with life at the MKM Stadium. Speaking to The Mirror, the Turk said:
“We don’t have any fear about Philogene getting bought back by Aston Villa. The buy-back option is only available if we get promoted.
“If Jaden wants to play with us and he doesn’t want to go to Villa, with the good relationship with the club we will ask for their permission to keep him. I believe that every player should be where they are happy. If Jaden’s decision is to stay with Hull City if we go to the Premier League, I’m confident Aston Villa will not make us disappointed.”
Signed on a three-year deal plus the option to extend by another 12 months, Ilicali hopes that the player will remain in East Yorkshire for some time to come:
“We are very, very happy with him. Again, If you look at our transfer history, convincing Jadon to join was very important last summer.
“We took maybe one month to finish the business but as I said, we are such determined people, crazy people that run the club that we show this ambition to the players. Jaden is one of the players I talked to and I think I affected his decision. When I saw him getting loaned to different clubs, I felt like he needed to feel like he belonged to a family.
“Instead of loaning, we offered Aston Villa a buy-option to sell him to us and in the end, we thank the Villa family for giving us this young talent. It took us one month but with good success. What we do in the last part of the transfers is to give the players confidence that we aren’t like every other club. The owner spends his time with the players giving full energy to the team.”
Hull currently sit one place and three points below Norwich City, who occupy the final play-off spot with a game in hand. They host struggling Stoke City on Good Friday before the tough trip to Elland Road on Easter Monday to take on table toppers Leeds United.
Writer’s View
Acun Ilicali seems to be creating something special at Hull City. He has created a feel-good atmosphere around the club and there is a feeling that he will bring Premier League football back to the MKM Stadium.
The calibre of players he has attracted this season show that he is building something. Philogene appears to be enjoying life at the club and it would be a shock to see him return to Villa if the Tigers do achieve promotion, especially as he could run the risk of playing a bit-part role under Unai Emery.
Head of Writing
