Hull City to swoop for ex-Fulham player on one condition amid Blackburn & Derby County interest | OneFootball

The Tigers are looking to bolster their goalkeepers union this summer

Hull City are plotting a move for ex-Fulham goalkeeper Marek Rodak on a free transfer, but there is also interest from Championship rivals Blackburn Rovers and Derby County.

That is according to transfer guru Alan Nixon via his Patreon account in a fresh update, which states that the Tigers will move for the Slovakian goalkeeper on one condition, amid interest from fellow Championship outfits.

City are rebuilding this pre-season under German head coach Tim Walter and have recently returned to East Yorkshire following a pre-season camp in chairman Acun Ilicali's home country of Türkiye, where the club hierarchy further outlined the club's transfer plans for the rest of the summer window.

However, as is the case with many areas of the Hull squad, the goalkeepers union now at Walter's disposal - just three weeks ahead of the EFL season kick-off against Bristol City on August 10th - is extremely light on experience and numbers as a result of recent injuries and departures.

But, the potential signing of Rodak would definitely fill those respective voids having been a seasoned goalkeeper at second tier level throughout his time in West London and previous loan spells.

Hull City keen on signing former Fulham goalkeeper Marek Rodak

As referred to above, this fresh update from Nixon on Sunday morning reveals that City are keen on pursuing the 27-year-old's services ahead of the upcoming campaign.

But, there is a potential stumbling block as the Tigers will need to meet the Slovakian international's wage demands, which are said to have put off recently relegated Burnley - now managed by Rodak's former Fulham boss, Scott Parker - as well as being a major hurdle for both Blackburn Rovers and Derby County.

Nixon states that Hull are desperate to add some much-needed experience to this area of the squad after the sale of Ryan Allsop, who featured 37 times between the posts last season, to Birmingham City, as well as Matt Ingram's fresh exit to newly-promoted Oxford United.

Similarly to Hull, Rodak is one of Derby's main targets after the Rams failed in their well-documented pursuit of former Brighton and Arsenal goalkeeper, Mathew Ryan, who has since joined AS Roma.

Nixon has stated that for the East Midlands' side's current predicament, the wages demanded by Rodak are high, as Paul Warne's men have also previously been linked with a move for Leicester City's Daniel Iversen.

Hull City's current goalkeeping situation

There's no getting away from the frustrations which many Hull fans are experiencing when it comes to this transfer window so far, with plenty of talk surrounding incomings, but only the permanent acquisition of Ryan Giles from Luton Town has been completed thus far.

It was made clear by Ilicali after Liam Rosenior's dismissal in May that January signing Ivor Pandur would most likely feature as the number one this upcoming season, as the Croatian is still waiting for his Championship bow after moving from Fortuna Sittard in January.

After Allsop and Ingram's departures, only Harvey Cartwright and Timothee Lo-Tutala - both of whom impressed on loan at Grimsby Town and Doncaster Rovers last term - remain as somewhat senior backup to Pandur, despite only making one second tier appearance between them.

But, after a 5-1 defeat to Fenerbahçe on Thursday night, the new boss admitted the potential "big problems" which would occur if no business was done to strengthen the goalkeepers union at the MKM Stadium as the aforementioned duo have both sustained injuries.

"We're trying to bring in new players and we need more numbers," Walter told Hull Live.

We have one goalie and we have two younger goalies from the Under 21s. At the moment, we do not have the numbers. We have to bring in a new one because we need some numbers. If Ivor is injured or gets injured, then we have big problems.

"We need a new goalkeeper, but it's the same situation for every position in the squad because we do not have the numbers."

Marek Rodak would be a smart addition for Tim Walter and Hull City

As good as this potential move would be for City's sake, it also proves extremely beneficial to the man currently employed by former Tigers boss, Marco Silva.

Rodak was used as back-up to Bernd Leno and was on the bench for every one of the Cottagers' Premier League games last campaign, with all of his five appearances coming in the EFL Cup and FA Cup.

However, the 22-time international is a proven safe pair of hands at this level, having made 66 appearances across two promotion-winning seasons for Fulham in 2019/20 and 2021/22, with the latter seeing the West London side get their hands on the second tier title.

On top of those, Rodak also made 45 appearances for Rotherham in the Championship back in 2018/19 and was an impressive performer despite the Millers' eventual relegation.

Overall, the experienced shot-stopper has made 111 appearances at this level and kept 34 clean sheets, meaning that if Hull can overcome the hurdle of his estimated £15,000 per week salary from last season, which he is likely going to want again, then they have a stopper who provides more-than adequate competition to rival Pandur as number one in East Yorkshire.