Fagan may miss Hull's first game

Fagan suffered a broken leg at Newcastle last season

Hull City forward Craig Fagan will have a hernia operation on Tuesday and could miss the start of the season, reports BBC Radio Humberside.

Fagan, 26, has not travelled with the rest of the squad to China for their involvement in the Asia Trophy.

City boss Phil Brown has confirmed Fagan will miss the final pre-season game with Aberdeen on 9 August.

But Brown remains hopeful Fagan could be fit for their first Premier League game, at Chelsea on 15 August.

The Asia Trophy also involves West Ham and Tottenham, with Hull's first game against Beijing Guoan on Wednesday.

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Fagan, who can play as a striker or winger, is in his second spell with the Tigers after he originally left the KC Stadium to join Derby County in January 2007, a move that was eventually worth £1m to Hull upon the Rams' promotion to the Premier League.

However, he rejoined his former club one year later and was in the side that won promotion to the Premier League with their Championship play-off final victory over Bristol City in May 2008.

Fagan's initial return to the Premier League was short-lived as he suffered a broken leg following a challenge by Newcastle's Danny Guthrie last September.

He made his return to the side as a goalscoring substitute during the 5-1 Boxing Day defeat by Manchester City and was one of Hull's more consistent performers as the club narrowly avoided relegation on the final day of the season.