Steve Bruce has been an exceptionally busy man so far in this summer transfer window as he looks to strengthen his squad ahead of next season’s Premier League campaign. So far he has completed the £8 million signing of Jake Livermore (and broken the club transfer record in doing so), and there are further moves on the cards.

This seems to be a summer in which Hull are beginning to stand up and be counted within the Premier League’s bigger boys, as they follow on from what was a particularly impressive January window. For all the controversy that surrounds their current chairman, Assem Allam, the Tigers could be setting themselves up for a good 2014/15 campaign if he continues to invest money as he has done so far.

Firstly, fans will hope that their winter signings, Nikica Jelavic and Shane Long in particular, will enter into next season fully-integrated into the side. It is notoriously difficult for a player to slot into a team when they join in January, and the two strikers did show signs of that at times. However, they are both proven Premier League goal-scorers, and they will be looking to add considerably to their career tally next season.

With a frontline finalised, Bruce can focus on packing his midfield with quality. He has already taken a great step toward doing that by securing the signing of Jake Livermore on a permanent basis. The former Spurs player impressed during a season-long loan at the club, and the board have shown ambition enough to react to his performance by purchasing Livermore outright.

With recent links to Norwich’s Robert Snodgrass emerging as well, then the creative drive of a side which did lack goals last year could be about to be bolstered. At Carrow Road last season, Snodgrass was a shining light in an otherwise dismal attack for Norwich City. Hull will hope that a Snodgrass/Long/Jelavic triangle will bring the goals that they have been lacking.

In defence, Steve Bruce’s men struggled to cope with some of the bigger teams at some points of last year, but Curtis Davies emerged as a fine player. Davies has been in the game for many years now, but with the added responsibility of being club-captain, he enjoyed arguably his best season last time. If reports linking the Tigers to Tottenham’s Michael Dawson materialise into a move, then the club will suddenly find themselves enjoying one of the most impressive centre-back partnerships in the country.

The general ambition of Hull City has clearly been bolstered by their narrow defeat in the FA Cup final last year. No doubt Steve Bruce and co. were devestated by Aaron Ramsey’s extra time winner for Arsenal at Wembley, but they can take the experience, and they will look to go one better next time.

The domestic cups will still represent the most prominent chance of silverware for Hull, but their inclusion in next year’s Europa League will give the squad another goal to work towards. They are still to qualify for the tournament proper, but a decent run in the competition is not entirely out of the question – just look at what Fulham managed to do in 2010.

There is also the on-going atmosphere at the KC Stadium. In a bizarre way, the attempts of Allam to change near enough everything about the football club, has created an extreme solidarity within it. The players play for the fans, the fans make extra noise for the players, and the manager just continues to deliver good decisions.

Hull are clearly a very different team to last year’s Southampton, but it is possible that they could achieve a similarly surprising result. The summer has gone well for them so far, and with a few more impressive signings, they could look a very different, dangerous side next year. The FA Cup final loss will have hurt, but if Bruce can stage a bounce-back, then his team could shock even their own supporters.