The big Mallik Wilks decision facing Hull City in final weeks of Championship campaign

Mallik Wilks’ latest omission from the Hull City matchday squad suggests that his days at the MKM Stadium may well be numbered, particularly when you factor in the worrying lack of goals throughout the season. Wilks has recovered from a foot injury he picked up at Nottingham Forest before Christmas, and despite coming off the bench in the win at Peterborough United last month, has not been seen since.

When questioned on the reason for his absence, head coach Shota Arveladze puts it down to selection decisions. This is a City side that has scored just 16 goals at home this season, the joint-worst in the Championship and when it comes to expected goals (XG), they have the lowest (0.90), so leaving out last season’s top scorer raises a question or two. What’s happening with Wilks, and why can he not get in ahead of players who are also not scoring goals?

Tyler Smith, Marcus Forss and Allahyar Sayyadmanesh have all been signed this season, and all appear to be above Wilks in the pecking order, while Tom Eaves has come in from the cold to become Arveladze’s preferred forward option, though his sending off during Friday night’s 1-0 defeat to Huddersfield Town ensures one of those will be handed a rare start at Middlesbrough this weekend.

Just six games remain given City are almost assured of a place in the Championship next season, there's plenty of calls for Arveladze to hand a first start to Allahyar, but what about Wilks? Surely his continued omission suggests his future lies elsewhere. Speak to any player and they’ll stress just how important pre-season is and the impact it has on the next nine months, and Wilks, just like George Honeyman, missed a fair chunk of it and then picked up another injury on the opening day at