Hull City Chairman Adam Pearson will continue to work through a shortlist of names today as he seeks to appoint the Tigers' new manager.

After relieving previous manager Phil Brown of his duties on Monday, work started immediately on finding a successor and the intention is to have somebody in place for Saturday's away game against Portsmouth.

"Things are moving forward," said Pearson.

"What happens when a manager leaves is that, suddenly, you get some interesting enquiries from left-field and they have to be considered.

"We've got a pretty tight list and we're working through it. Our intention is to have somebody in place for the weekend game at Portsmouth.

"We're working through this exercise as quickly as we can, but obviously we want to explore every possibility."

A number of names have been linked with the vacancy since Monday lunchtime and while Pearson says many of those are in the frame, there are some candidates who haven't been mentioned in the media.

"I think all the names mentioned (in the media) are pretty reasonable. There are a few who the press haven't picked up on yet that we're talking to and it's always nice to have a couple of secret ones tucked away.

"I think we'll be able to bring that to the fore over the next couple of days."

With only nine games remaining this season, the new manager's immediate task will be to keep the Tigers in the Premier League.

With City currently in the relegation zone after four consecutive defeats, Pearson and the Club's board of directors felt it was the right time to make a change and add some fresh impetus in the quest for vital points.

"We feel that we've got a quarter of the season to go with some winnable games within that. It's not a fixture list that's packed full of 'top four' games, it's a fixture list with games where we would expect to get some points.

"We feel that we're best served by making the change now. That will bring a fresh face in, some new impetus and some new focus to get those 14 or 15 points that we're going to need."

Meanwhile, the City Chairman was quick to deny national newspaper reports claiming that Brown was relieved of his duties as a result of last week's public disagreement between Nick Barmby and Jimmy Bullard.

"I read those reports with staggering incredulity," added Pearson.

"There's nothing in those reports at all. The situation is that we weren't accumulating enough points and that was purely and simply the reason.

"Any other stories in the papers are there purely to sell the newspaper."

Log on to TIGERS Player now for an exclusive interview with Adam Pearson which includes:

- The latest in the search for a new manager
- The difficult decision to relieve Phil Brown of his duties
- What the term 'gardening leave' actually means
- Why it is the right time for a change
- Whether the new manager will be appointed on a short-term or long-term deal
- The role Brian Horton and Steve Parkin are currently playing

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