Hull City manager Phil Brown believes he still has the ‘one million per cent’ support of his players following the departure of chairman Paul Duffen.

Duffen quit as Tigers chief yesterday, less than 24 hours after the club were forced to issue a statement denying Brown had been sacked.

The departing chairman claimed the club’s on-field problems were the reason for his exit, with Hull only narrowly avoiding relegation last term and struggling in the bottom three this season.

But Brown, who alongside Duffen helped guide the club into the top flight for the first time in their history, believes off-field matters were the main contributing factor.

Concerns have been raised over the club’s financial stability and there are further reports that owner Russell Bartlett is planning to bring in former chairman Adam Pearson, who quit his post at Derby on Wednesday, to replace Duffen.

Brown attempted to steer the subject onto tomorrow’s trip to Burnley and said: “You have been live at the training ground and it was no surprise that you’ve seen the response.

“I think the players are one million per cent behind me and hopefully that will show in the performance tomorrow.

“As you’ve seen, there are some bright lively players looking to put their case forward to play (at Turf Moor).”