Steve Bruce is keeping his fingers crossed that his Hull players are ready for their big European adventure.

The Tigers launch their first ever Europa League campaign next week when they face either Slovakian side Trencin or FK Vojvodina of Serbia in the third qualifying round. It is likely to be Trencin who take a 4-0 lead into the second leg of their tie.

Bruce admits it is a challenge to be ready for competitive football in July, and is hoping fitness levels are up to scratch. He said: "Let's hope we're ready and not under-cooked. That's the difficult bit. A team who have played games will be fitter than us, but we should be okay."

Bruce added Robert Snodgrass and Tom Ince to his squad during the summer and secured loan-signing Jake Livermore on a permanent basis, but he is in the market for more signings.

Hull have been linked with a move for Rennes defender Jean-Armel Kana-Biyik but efforts to sign Michael Dawson of Spurs have so far come to nothing.