Hull City To Win Race For Bundesliga Winner

According to the Football Insider, Championship side Hull City have won the race to sign Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Gustavo Puerta. 

It is believed several European clubs, including the likes of Rangers, Anderlecht, PAOK, Brondby and Red Star Belgrade were all interested in the 21-year-old Ecuadorian international, but the English outfit have seemingly won the race for his signature.

Despite being contracted with Leverkusen until 2028, the German giants are looking to move him 0n, with the player only making 10 appearances since joining in January 2023. During this period, he was also on loan to the Bundesliga 2 club Nuremberg; however, he did not make any appearances during his six-month stay. The Tigers have agreed on an initial loan deal, plus an obligation to buy.

After the disappointment of missing out on the play-offs last season, Liam Rosenior was sacked, and replaced by German manager Tim Walter. There has been mass turnover at the MKM Stadium, with loanees such as Fabio Carvalho, Liam Delap and Tyler Morton all returning to their parent clubs after loan spells, with crucial players such as Jacob Greaves and Jaden Philogene also leaving to make the step-up to the Premier League. To replace the departing players, Hull have added 10 new additions, including the likes of Marvin Mehlem, Anthony Racioppi, Liam Millar and Oscar Zambrano, who have all joined from International clubs.

Puerta looks set to be their 11th signing, with new manager Walter reportedly being a big fan of Puerta from his time as manager in Germany.

The 21-year-old will not be the only Ecuadorian at the club, with 20-year-old Zambrano joining from LDU Quito on a season-long loan, with the view to make it permanent at the end of the season.

The Tigers haven’t started life under Walter in the way they would’ve liked, not winning a single game in any competition so far. They were knocked out of the EFL Cup by Sheffield Wednesday, and have drawn in the Championship against Bristol City and Plymouth Argyle. They continue their Championship campaign tomorrow against Millwall.

Writer’s View

With the rocky start Hull have had, Walter feels like he needs some more bodies through the door before the window slams shut next Friday. Although Puerta hasn’t impressed in Germany, the Tigers look like they feel like he will fit in at the MKM Stadium. The Ecuadorian is still young and has plenty of time on his side if he wants to reach the heights of winning the Bundesliga with Leverkusen again.

Only time will tell if Hull do any more business in the window, but with another young player joining, their squad looks to be almost complete going into the rest of the season. Beating off high-calibre European opposition reflects the excitement around the Championship at the moment, with multiple players in recent years getting the chance to make the step up to the Premier League and impress. This goes alongside the fact that Hull’s Turkish owner Acun Ilicali has ambitions of getting Hull back into the Premier League themselves.