Hull City urged to avoid new deal for £15k-per-week star | OneFootball

Our Hull City Fan Pundit believes his club should be looking elsewhere in the summer

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

As the end of the season approaches, Hull City will not be the only side with decisions to make about their out-of-contract players.

The Tigers certainly have a decision to make about 38-year-old winger Nordin Amrabat, whose deal expires this summer.

He was signed at the start of this year on a short-term contract after he left Greek side AEK Athens, and has gone on to make a handful of appearances.

We asked our Hull Fan Pundit, Ryan, whether the former Morocco international is worth a contract renewal.

Hull fan calls time on Amrabat at the MKM

Speaking to Football League World, Ryan said: “Listen, I really like the guy, and it shows a true professional for him to just sit on the bench, because he'll come in knowing that he wasn't at the top of the pecking order.

“And he's come in, he hasn't got that much game time and, like I say, it takes a true professional for him to just ply his trade, not play that many games and wait for his opportunity as well as probably guiding a lot of the younger lads in training.

“But at the end of the day, he's 38 years old, we’re meant to be a team on the rise, with all these big aspirations for the club.

“Having a 38-year-old, who let's not get it twisted, his legs still look like they've gone, but he's just willing to put a shift in, I don't know whether it's worth another contract, I think he’s just helpful in the position that we're in.

“But [Mohamed] Belloumi comes back, [Liam] Millar comes back, we've already got Abu Kamara, got Kyle Joseph who can play wide, we might be getting Louie Barry again next season.

“So, I don't think we need to be splashing out any more money on things we don't need to when it could be going on a really, really good striker.”

There may be more rewarding ways to fill Amrabat’s spot

As Ryan says, Amrabat has put everything possible into this short stint at the MKM Stadium, but it has consisted of just nine league appearances, totalling 197 minutes.

Capology estimate that Amrabat currently commands a wage of £15k a week which, while not the highest paid player in their ranks, is still a significant outgoing.

If the wage is anywhere near that mark, Hull must question whether they’re truly getting their money’s worth in terms of the raw output Amrabat is supplying, or else, as Ryan outlines, they’d be better off spending that budget elsewhere.

Even if they don’t bring in a young forward as Ryan mentions, the level of game time Amrabat has been getting would be the perfect exposure for some of the Tigers’ youngsters rising through the ranks.

Using that method, they’d be saving on Amrabat’s wages and developing the brightest talents they have within their system, which could bring financial rewards of their own further down the line.

Amrabat worked as a stop-gap, and has worked hard when asked for the team, but fans like Ryan would be well within their rights to question the club’s direction if the see fit to hand him another year, given the stage of his career he’s at.