HULL City are preparing to swoop once more for Alan Lee after their bid to sign Richard Cresswell fell through.The Tigers pulled the plug on the Cresswell deal after he failed a medical at the KC Stadium and the Hull chairman Paul Duffen immediately turned his attentions back to the Blues striker.

By Derek Davis

HULL City are preparing to swoop once more for Alan Lee after their bid to sign Richard Cresswell fell through.

The Tigers pulled the plug on the Cresswell deal after he failed a medical at the KC Stadium and the Hull chairman Paul Duffen immediately turned his attentions back to the Blues striker.

Although Town boss Jim Magilton will this week hold further talks with Lee about a new, improved contact, Duffen hopes he can still convince Ipswich to sell him, even though he doesn't want to up his last offer.

Duffen last night told BBC Radio Humberside: "I bid £600,000 for Alan Lee. The only reason he hasn't joined the football club is the club where he currently plays football has decided he's not available, he hasn't gone anywhere else.

“It's a mug's game if you then go back in and say 'I'll bid against myself'. I don't want to be the only man in an auction."

Duffen insists Hull would have still tried to capture Lee even if the Cresswell move had gone ahead, with the Leeds striker now seemingly heading for Stoke City. Duffen said: “Alan Lee wouldn't have been off even if Cresswell had happened…this isn't an either/or situation. I'm determined to get the players that the manager wants to play at the football club.

“But the terms of bringing in Alan Lee have to be right. I think that we've made a very generous bid for the player. At the moment we haven't had a chance to talk to him, as we haven't been given permission.

“I think it's the right price, it's a generous price, but having said that we bid £750,000 for Jamie Cureton. We are not afraid of going out and buying a striker for £1million if it's the right striker who's available and who fits into Phil Brown's plans, that's what's really critical."

Magilton insists he wants last season's leading scorer settled before the Championship season starts next week.

He said: “Alan and I will sit down again and get it sorted one way or another.

"I would like to go into the season with everyone absolutely focused and sure they are going to play a big part for us this season.

“Alan has played a big part in pre-season and played very well.”