Earlier this week, Steve Bruce continued to strengthen his first-team squad for the season ahead by snapping up winger Tom Ince from Blackpool. The 22-year-old – who had been linked with a number of Premier League suitors over the summer, in addition to his father’s former club, Inter Milan – arrives at the KC Stadium on a two-year deal, with the fee expected to be decided by a transfer tribunal after his Seasiders’ contract expired earlier in the summer:
Ince is the Tigers’ third new signing of the summer, following Jake Livermore and Robert Snodgrass to the club as Bruce sets about restructuring his midfield area. Discussing the deal with the Hull official website, the wide man is full of optimism for the campaign ahead:
“There is a really good blend here with youth and experience and everybody is pushing in the right direction. The project here is for the club to push on, become a better team and get higher up the table. This is a club that is starting to make a name for itself in the Premier League after a fantastic season in 2013/14. I’m over the moon to be part of a project that is moving forward. I know the manager likes to play attractive football and I’m relishing the challenge of trying to help improve the team. The aim now is to try and work my way into the team here by working hard and trying to help the team to win games.”
The History
Ince joined the Liverpool youth academy as a 16-year-old back in 2008 but failed to play a single league game for the Anfield club. After signing professional forms two years later, the winger moved on loan to Notts County during the latter stages of 2010/11, scoring twice and serving up a single assist in eight appearances, before being snapped up by Blackpool in August 2011.
In his first season with the Bloomfield Road outfit, Ince quickly settled in the Championship. Over 33 league appearances, he produced six goals and seven assists, helping his side reach the Play-Off final, where they were defeated by West Ham. The following season, however, Ince turned in a series of displays that had many interested parties circling for his signature – an eye-catching 18 goals and 14 assists in 2012/13 earned him a place in the Championship Team of the Year and also saw him voted Football League Player of the Year for 2013.
Turning down an offer from Cardiff City last summer, Ince continued to prosper at Blackpool. Over 23 appearances, he returned seven goals and six assists before moving on loan to Crystal Palace in the second half of 2013/14 – a goal and assist on his Eagles’ debut suggested he had hit the ground running but Tony Pulis remained unconvinced and handed him just seven more appearances before allowing him to return to Blackpool.
On the international stage, Ince has turned out for England Under 17-21 sides on a total of 19 occasions and has found the net three times.
The Prospects
One look at Hull’s attacking statistics from last season highlights just why Bruce has been quick to invest. Winter signings Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic were joint-top scorers with four strikes apiece despite joining the club midway through the campaign, whilst in terms of creativity, Livermore’s four assists were superior to any other player during a season-long loan stint.
The arrival of Snodgrass will certainly catch Fantasy managers’ eyes and with the Scot more likely to be handed set-pieces and corners, his fellow new boy Ince may struggle to grab our attentions. With the former Norwich man expected to take up the right flank berth, Ince is likely to be pencilled in for the opposite flank – potentially scuppering the game time of Robbie Brady, who mustered a mere three appearances from Gameweek 17 onwards last term in an injury-hit campaign. Given that Ince has yet to establish himself at the top level, though, a price of around 5.5 in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game looks likely – if the more-established Snodgrass comes in around 6.5, some may well opt for the budget-friendlier option. In the Sky Sports Fantasy game, there’s little between the pair, though, with the Scot slightly dearer at 6.2 to 6.1.
Certainly, with the two new boys on board, Bruce looks less inclined to roll out a 3-5-2 formation – a system which suited more defensively-minded pair Ahmed Elmohamady and Maynor Figueroa out wide. Ince also offers an option in “the hole” if the Tigers manager fancies a lone forward set-up, though; his goal and assist for Palace against West Brom came courtesy of his only start through the middle for Tony Pulis’ side. A reprisal of that role looks the most enticing option from a Fantasy perspective and Ince’s speed and trickery would certainly afford Hull an extra dimension in the final third should Bruce look to split up the Long-Jelavic partnership as he competes on the domestic and European fronts.
In addition, the Premier League fixture list for 2014/15 has smiled kindly upon Hull as they look to improve upon last term’s 16th place finish. Home games against Stoke, West Ham and Palace in the first seven Gameweeks, supplemented by trips to QPR, Villa and Newcastle, suggest Bruce’s side could be worthy of our early investment and if Ince can live up to the hype and quickly deliver, he may well be on our radars before long.
