Hull City - The summer so far...

A look at what The Tigers have been up to so far and must do with the rest of the off-season to compete for promotion from the Championship in 2015/16...

Wolves striker Benik Afobe - Would he be worth a big splash?

Goalkeepers

Business so far?

Steve Bruce released veteran Steve Harper and the club’s longest serving “player” Mark Oxley at the end of last season. He could have gone either way on both but no-one is crying over either decision. Oxley has signed a two year deal at Hibs where he spent last season on loan.

What might happen next?

Some say Bruce will let Eldin Jakupovic go after three years of barely warming the Tigers’ bench.

What must City do?

Whether the Jak stays or goes, we need to find a goalkeeper who will challenge McGregor. It would be preferable if it’s a younger goalkeeper with huge presence who can develop alongside McGregor while genuinely challenging him. I expect to see a free agent who’s been around the block.

Defenders

Business so far?

The retained list announced by City after relegation did not contain the names of Liam Rosenior and Paul McShane. Both players should have been the back bone of a squad looking to win promotion from the Championship. Instead Rosenior will play for Brighton next season while McShane interests Reading. Maynor Figueroa and the unfortunate Joe Dudgeon were also released.

What might happen next?

Michael Dawson appears to have committed his future to The Tigers but James Chester, Ahmed Elmohamady, Curtis Davies, Andy Robertson and Robbie Brady continue to attract admirers. The rumour mill says that Everton and Newcastle want Elmo, Norwich, WBA and Villa covet Brady, Palace fancy Davies and half the Premier League want JC and Robertson.

What must City do?

Chester, Elmo and Brady absolutely must stay. All deserve to play in the Premier League next season but if the club has the ambition to bounce back – they have to be part of the team. Sadly all three are out of contract next season which doesn’t give the club a lot of protection. A shoddy policy of renewing contracts is threatening to bite us on the arse.

Youngsters Harry Maguire and Brian Lenihan didn’t get much of a look-in last season but if Bruce is serious about building a younger, hungrier squad then their inclusion on a regular basis will be most welcome and will somewhat temper the disappointment of seeing great professionals like Rosenior and McShane depart.

Arrivals will only be necessary if we lose players. Otherwise we have quality and competition in every position and the ability to play three at the back or a back four.

Midfielders

Business so far?

The indefatigable Stephen Quinn has turned down a new contract offer from The Tigers and joined Reading. Clearly under-valued by Bruce until relegation was confirmed and he realised Quinny would come in useful – the Irishman has chosen to seek pastures new.

What might happen next?

Jake Livermore will receive a ban of between six months and two years (the latter most likely) after testing positive for cocaine after the game against Crystal Palace in April. Tom Huddlestone has been linked with a move to Bournemouth with many fans offering to give him a lift. Mo Diame and Robert Snodgrass are unlikely to be fit for the start of the season.

What must City do?

We weren’t awash with options in midfield last season with Diame and Snodgrass’s injuries. With the departures and suspensions we need to bring in at least two players to compete with Meyler and Huddlestone in a four man midfield or alongside them in a three.

A motivated Huddlestone could be a huge asset if no-one is crazy enough to buy him but motivated isn’t something Tom has been very often in the last 18 months. If he wants to resurrect a career that is currently heading for the “wasted potential” category.

When Bruce talked about building that young, hungry squad, he had to have had midfield in mind. We need energy, pace and power in midfield and he has to find players who can pass the ball too because the quality of the Championship continues to grow year on year.

Forwards

Business so far?

Yannick Sagbo was released to the surprise of no-one. Young winger Calaum Jahraldo-Martin signed a new contract and will be hoping to be involved next season.

What might happen next?

Expensive flop Abel Hernandez, January signing Dame N’Doye and the excellent but often injured Nikica Jelavic will all be moved on because their wages are ridiculous and none of them fancies playing in the Championship. Jelavic will go with everyone’s best wishes, N’Doye will be remembered as someone who did his best while Hernandez will go down as the biggest waste of money in the history of our club.

Tom Ince’s future remains unclear. Derby have the option to buy him for around £5m as the result of a clause someone short-sighted put into his loan deal in January. He’s another player Bruce now desperately wants to keep given his record at Championship level and must now grovel to.

What must City do?

For about the millionth time since Bruce became manager he now has to find a striker or three. Only the aforementioned Jahraldo-Martin and Sone Aluko look certain to start the season at the KC and neither of them are out and out strikers.

Unless you get very lucky in the loan market – strikers cost a fortune, even at Championship level, and there are few guaranteed to score goals. Andre Gray of Brentford is one of the few realistic names mentioned as a potential target. The fact that he has a price tag of £4m after one reasonably successful season at Championship level shows what the club are up against.

Wolves striker Benik Afobe would be my first pick if we’re splashing out big money while free agents Jamie Ward and John Guidetti are a couple of talented if lost souls who would be worth a contract.

Ex-Tiger watch 2015

Amoo, David (Carlisle released)

Anderson, Paul (Ipswich released)

Andrews, Keith (Bolton released)

Buckle, Jake (Hull City released)

Bywater, Stephen (Doncaster released)

Cracknell, Joe (Hull City released)

Dawson, Leon (Hull City released)

Dudgeon, Joe (Hull City released)

Duke, Matt (Northampton released)

East, Danny (Portsmouth released - Signed for Grimsby)

Figueroa, Maynor (Hull City released)

Gerrard, Anthony (Huddersfield released)

Harper, Steve (Hull City released)

Hunt, Stephen (Ipswich released)

Keates, Dean (Wrexham released)

King, Josh (Bournemouth to Blackburn)

Mahon, John (Hull City released)

Margetts, Jonathon (Hull City released)

McCawl, Eoghan (Hull City released)

McShane, Paul (Hull City released)

Morton, Devonte (Hull City released)

Norris, David (Peterborough released)

Proschwitz, Nick (Brentford released)

Rose, Jake (Hull City released)

Rosenior, Liam (Hull City released)

Sagbo, Yannick (Hull City released)

Topliss, Sam (Hull City released)

Walker, Joe (Hull City released)

Walton, Simon (Stevenage released)

Warner, Tony (Accrington released)

Wiseman, Scott (Preston to Scunthorpe)

Zayatte, Kamil (Sheff Wed released)

Five lessons Hull City can learn from Premier League relegation

Hull City dropped out of the Premier League yesterday ending our second two season spell in the top flight. This relegation doesn’t feel as devastating as the first one did. The club isn’t in the same catastrophic financial position – as far as I know – and the squad is a blend of players who are more than worth keeping and some who have sell-on value and potential suitors.

While relegation wasn’t heart-breaking, it was utterly needless and was caused by under-achievement on the playing and management side. I’ve picked out the five lessons I think the club must learn in order to bounce back from the Championship and to make a better fist of the Premier League if we are lucky enough to do so.

I am happy to see Steve Bruce remain as manager despite the mistakes that have been made. He is a thoroughly decent man who is honest enough to know that he’s made errors and is determined to make up for them. Without sweeping changes throughout the football side and a whole new approach – we are not going to find a better manager in the Championship than Steve Bruce. For that reason, he should get the first shot at turning things around but he needs to address the problems that have contributed to relegation.

1.       Protect the team ethic

Steve Bruce’s promotion winning side was built on togetherness in the dressing room - excellent professionals who worked hard for each other. While our football was neat, it wasn’t a team blessed with flair but one that won games the hard way.

On winning promotion, Bruce set out to bring in players who had Premier League experience but were solid professionals. Even in the January transfer window when he splashed out on two strikers in Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic – he signed players who fit the team ethic he’d instigated.

Unfortunately the care taken to foster a fine team spirit was abandoned in the summer of 2014. Each big money signing on huge wages pushed out of joint the nose of Bruce’s established workhorses. Meanwhile an excellent professional in George Boyd was allowed to leave. The carelessness became recklessness on September 1^st when Bruce went out and panic bought Abel Hernadez for almost £10m, Mo Diame, Gaston Ramirez and the poisonous Hatem Ben Arfa.

I admit that last opinion is spouted with the benefit of hindsight. Back in September, I was wetting my knickers with everyone else at the prospect of Steve Bruce dragging the best out of these lost souls. The players signed to help take the club two steps forward instead dragged it back several. Bruce is fortunate that it hasn’t cost him his job.

2.       Avoid training ground woes

I have no idea what we do in training. That isn’t ignorance or flippancy. It’s the result of watching the team make the same mistakes time after time while failing to address issues like poor set piece delivery and an inability to create and take chances. Bruce has had two assistant managers, Steve Agnew and Mike Phelan, and nothing has changed under either.

Can you name a player who has progressed since joining the club? Bruce has a knack for getting performances out of players who are under-achieving but his staff does not improve players. Players with promise like Jake Livermore, Tom Ince and Andy Robertson have regressed since we signed them.

Another serious issue is the amount of injuries we’ve suffered. It’s hard to think of a player who hasn’t had a spell on the sidelines in the past three seasons while some have suffered time and again. We are riddled with muscular injuries and we rush players back into the fold before they are ready.

The club is hampered by the facilities available at the training ground, which you have to make allowances for  - it’s a long standing problem, but must strive to improve the personnel on the coaching and physiotherapy side.

3.       Scouting - Be prepared!

There are many areas in which Hull City is well short of being a Premier League club. That is understandable given that we have only been one for four of our one hundred and eleven year existence and that only ten years ago we were just getting out of League One for the first time in almost fifteen years. One important area is scouting.

The scouting setup at the club is rudimentary. There have been steps taken to improve it but it is still way behind most others. Many signings in the past three years have been players known to the manager (or well known to everyone) who have often been acquired for excessive transfer fees because our options are limited.

When we’ve strayed from that formula – the results have been poor. Nick Proschwitz and Abel Hernandez have been expensive failures. Yannick Sagbo and Fathi were cheap gambles but also struggled. Gedo was reasonably successful the first time and Dame N’Doye – who Bruce says he’s watched for several years – looked a good fit for the Premier League.

More responsibility has to be taken in the future to ensure that we get value for money in the market. Paying top dollar for established players isn’t sustainable as an only option.

4.       Be positive

Both of City’s spells in the Premier League have started well and seen the club win friends playing attacking football. Both ended with managers setting up only to try desperately to avoid defeat.

Numerous times this season, fans left games away from wondering why they’d bothered turning up when the team hadn’t. Not just in the level of performance but the lack of intent. It’s an approach that is utterly senseless as well as negative.

We have struggled to score goals for five seasons. It’s been an Achilles heel for a long time under three managers. As a consequence, if we concede a goal, we very rarely get anything from the game. That makes going into games hoping for a nil-nil draw a ridiculous risk.

The league table mid-way through the season also showed the lack of value in picking up too many draws anyway. Going out to win games is the only way to approach the Premier League. You’ll lose more than you win but you’ll win more than three other teams.

5.       Value the support

I’m not going to blame off the field dramas for our failure. We have been relegated because the manager and the players have not done their jobs to the best of their abilities.

However it hasn’t been as much fun as it should have been to follow a team hitting new heights in winning automatic promotion, reaching an FA Cup Final and qualifying for Europe because everything has been built on a backdrop of negativity.

I don’t want to rant about the specific issues. Maybe some other time! But the attempted name change, the raising of disabled concessionary prices (to raise an amount of money that wouldn’t pay our worst player for a week), the eviction of sports clubs from a community sports venue, refusing to spend the Premier League’s ASI (Away Supporters Initiative) fund on our own supporters and a number of minor misdemeanours has caused consternation amongst fans.

Some fans have felt alienated and left or reduced their input into the club while those left behind are divided. City fans booing City fans for singing a City song has to be one of the saddest things I’ve seen from our support.

Hull City is incredibly important to the City and the community. Not only is a successful Hull City a force for economic improvement but it puts the City on the map. That half of the column inches dedicated to the club on a national (and international) level in the past two years have been dedicated to a ridiculous idea born out of a disagreement between a spiteful multi-millionaire and a comatose local council has been a massive waste.

What should have been a golden period has and continues to be soured by off-field nonsense. While I won’t blame that for the club’s relegation – it has done us no good whatsoever.

When relegation was confirmed after a 0-0 draw with Manchester United, 23,000 Hull City fans stayed to the end and as one, rose to appreciate and console the players despite everything. It was a show of immense class that made be proud to be part of the club and for which Steve Bruce offered his heart felt gratitude to a “unique” set of supporters.

That support should be embraced and valued by the people in charge of the club regardless of how much of the revenue they make up. More than anything on this list – I hope that is a lesson that can be learned from our recent experiences.

Burnley H (TC Match Report)

There have been many, many grounds through the years on which City fans have been left angry and embarrassed. None quiet so often as Turf Moor. The scene of probably the most heart-breaking night in the club’s history continues to torment us and the latest defeat at the hands of Burnley, a ninth in our last eleven visits, was so bewilderingly inept that describing it in words that won’t offend is almost impossible.

It has to be said - Burnley are rubbish. That’s not bitterness. Just cold, hard fact. They haven’t gone ten Premier League games without a win because of some cruel quirk of fate. They are a second division team playing top flight football. Sean Dyche picks a team in a basic 4-4-2 formation. They hit “percentage” balls into areas they think Danny Ings pace might trouble the opposition and if the opposing defence meet the ball first, they work incredibly hard to be first to the second ball. Defensively they are well drilled and their wide players become secondary full-backs the second they cough up position (which is pretty often).

Fortunately for Burnley, limitations and all, Hull City are like a pension scheme for mediocre teams in wretched form. Remember Sheffield Wednesday starting the 2007/08 season with six straight defeats until salvation turned up in black and amber. Or ten years earlier when Doncaster Rovers, one of the worst sides in English football history, ended an eight match losing run at our expense. Even just a year ago we provided the stepping stone on which Crystal Palace built their path to safety.

Once again in just-about-Lancashire we demonstrated our unerring ability to be even worse than anyone could possibly predict. It’s not about ability. This team has recently earned great praise for its ability to match Arsenal and Liverpool on their own ground. This was a submissive performance from a side that demonstrated the distinct lack of a backbone. They didn’t compete with Burnley. They barely even tried. In the key midfield area in particular, Burnley drew a battle line and we didn’t fancy it at all.

The Tigers (3-5-2): Harper; Chester, McShane, Davies; Elmohamady, Huddlestone, Livermore, Diame, Brady; Aluko, Hernandez.

Steve Harper returned in goal showing that Steve Bruce would literally play a one-armed man over Jakupovic while Aluko came in for Ben Arfa. Presumably to provide the pace to threaten defenders in behind and to stop Hernandez cutting the lonely figure he did against Southampton a week ago.

Danny Ings missed the first chance of the game after forty seconds. He out-muscled McShane and latched onto the first of many hopeful balls over the top but flicked the ball over Harper and wide of the far post. Burnley were edgy in possession and presented the ball to Aluko who ran at the last-man, Shackell, but saw his shot blocked. At the other end James Chester picked up a booking for a clear obstruction on his old mate George Boyd who’d megged him. Mark Clattenburg was super quick to flash the yellow card which set the tone for his afternoon. He’d flash nine more.

On nineteen minutes, the chants of “City till I die” only encouraged Burnley who forced a corner. Stephen Ward headed it down at the back post and Ings turned and hammered a goal-bound shot only for Harper to keep it out with an incredibly strong right wrist. The rebound was also poked goalwards but Robbie Brady kicked it off the line and despite the hopeful appeals from the home side, Mark Clattenburg’s watch didn’t signal a goal.

A goal for either side didn’t look remotely likely in the remainder of the half. Burnley gathered some momentum gaining confidence from their increasing dominance in the middle of the park and the sporadic Tigers’ attacks. Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore, not for the first time this season, were useless without the ball and pointless with it. Mo Diame, so impressive recently, was equally wasteful. Diame has a languid style that looks a thing of natural beauty when he’s on top of his game but protrudes an aura of laziness when he isn’t. Our wing-backs were being neutered by the hard working Burnley wingers Arfield and Boyd dropping back to fill the spaces they love to exploit and Aluko was twisting and turning his way to nowhere in particular.

An uninspiring half came to a close and we wished we’d stayed in the cricket club next door and had a few more pints. The second half against Southampton was a major disappointment and whatever malaise the players fell into during that half time break at the KC was proving tough to get out of.

Just two minutes into the second half, Steve Bruce decided he’d had enough of waiting for the players to lift it and prepared two subs. It was odd timing so I assume he’d send them out with the threat of making changes after five/ten minutes and almost immediately regretted it. With Stephen Quinn ready on the touchline and Gaston Ramirez tying his laces – Burnley made him pay for not making the change at half time.

Danny Ings saw a shot blocked by Davies after Burnley too easily manoeuvred their way to the edge of our box. The block rebounded to right back Kieran Trippier whose beautiful cross was thumped home by the forehead of Ashley Barnes. A player without a Premier League goal scoring for the side without a Premier League win. Forget Children In Need – this was charity.

They didn’t particularly deserve to lead but we deserved to be behind. Annoyingly they’d scored from a lovely right-wing cross after we’d spent forty-five minutes watching Elmohamady refuse to try such a thing. The expected City response came slowly. Hernandez headed straight at Heaton after Elmohamady rescued a Diame “shot” by the corner flag. Ben Arfa replaced Chester and after several minutes of the players looking utterly mystified as to where they should be playing, we settled into a 4-4-2 with Ben Arfa and Quinn wide and Ramirez up front with Hernandez.

Quinn was the pick of the substitutes and found a little joy on the left hand side producing one particularly brilliant cross that flew across the six yard box and away without anyone in black and amber gambling sufficiently. Ben Arfa produced one brilliant touch but otherwise flattered to deceive. The same was true of Ramirez who continues to bring absolutely nothing to the table. He’s a delightful footballer who floats with or without the ball and has an exquisite touch but it just doesn’t translate into anything particularly effective. Unfortunately things that produce goals like crosses, shots or well-timed runs into the penalty area aren’t on his agenda. If you were wondering why such a cultured player has struggled so much at Southampton – this is why.

On 63 a Robbie Brady free kick caused a scramble in their penalty area and a towering Curtis Davies header leads to Hernandez turning and firing a shot into bodies. A half-hearted handball shout is waved away and as the ball flies up into the air Davies tries an overhead kick at the far post. It was an idiotic way to kill a promising attack against a jittery defence. Within a minute Davies is involved at the other end as Burnley scream for a handball decision against him. That is also waved away but Davies goes down, leaves the field and, after eight minutes of thinking about it, doesn’t return – leaving us with only ten men for the remainder. Davies wanders sheepishly past the away following holding his back, presumably hurt trying that ridiculous bicycle kick.

The ten men took the game to Burnley, who were happy just to whack everything clear and reorganise, but didn’t have enough to penetrate the defence. The only clear cut chance fell to Hernandez who met Robbie Brady’s excellent cross at the near post but could only get a flick on the ball when he looked primed to score. The rest of the game was spent kicking lumps out of each other with Marney, Ings, Brady, Livermore and Jutkiewicz picking up bookings in the last five minutes alone and joining Chester, Ward, Duff, Shackell  and Hernandez on the back of Clattenburg’s yellow card. He’ll be sharpening his pencil before next week. Assuming he’s not dropped for rushing home to watch X-Factor or something.

There was a massive amount of inevitability about this result. I tweeted weeks ago hoping that Burnley might beat Everton or Arsenal to avoid going into this game winless. I did imagine that certain home victory coming as the result of a terrible refereeing decision, a breakaway goal or some other terrible miscarriage of justice. I didn’t expect it to go down as a result of our own cowardice.

Both players and management will struggle to look themselves in the mirror today. With the possible exception of Paul McShane, Robbie Brady and Steve Harper’s good arm. There’s nothing wrong with being out-thought. But when you’ve come second in the brains department to well-organised but tactically limited side – there is a problem. Like Southampton last week, Burnley found it too easy to castrate Elmohamady (not literally) and their two midfield players outworked our three. In the absence of Nikica Jelavic, Bruce is struggling to think of a way to get the best of Hernandez and give the team a focal point.

These signs are worrying. This is clearly the most talented group of players we’ve ever had but as a team we play in fits and starts and haven’t put together a strong ninety minutes too often. That’s why we only have eleven points from eleven games and we are looking at a relegation battle. I’m not panicking just yet. I’m nervous though. A few more performances like we’ve seen in the last game and a half and we’ll be deep in the mire. And that makes the possibility of a trip to Turf Moor next season a reality. And I can’t cope with that. I bloody hate that place.

Crystal Palace home - Ratings Report

Steve Harper – 6

Would have enjoyed his quiet afternoon having conceded 13 times in his previous 5 games in goal for City. He dealt well with corners underneath his crossbar and made a spectacular save from Bolasie’s fine effort late on. Generally looked calm – sometimes bored.

James Chester – 7

Great to see him back in the starting line-up after an undeserved demotion. Had a solid game with a few hiccups. He was tasked with getting up Bolasie’s arse as soon as he got the ball and stopping him from turning. Their Congolese winger escaped a few times early on but as the game progressed, Chester got the measure of him and cut out any threat at source. His first two passes of the second half were atrocious but generally he helped us keep the ball better than we have recently.

Michael Dawson – 8

Demonstrated the qualities he was signed for with a gritty defensive performance. Things were rarely hairy at the back but when they were, Dawson threw himself into every challenge, made key headers and looked much more comfortable in the back three than he did at Villa. His favourite long diagonal out of defence is still hit and miss but he did have some success with it at times.

Curtis Davies – 6

Still doesn’t look quite himself, I don’t think. I don’t know if he’s had his nose pushed out of joint not being the senior defender or whether he’s apprehensive about protecting Robertson. His pace kept Fraizer Campbell under wraps but he’s not attacking the ball in both boxes with the vigour we’ve seen previously. Hopefully the win and clean sheet will take some of the pressure off and allow him to concentrate on his own game.

Ahmed Elmohamady – 8

Typical marauding Elmo performance that absolutely terrified Joel Ward. The wing-back role suits him so much. It frees up some of the defensive responsibility and allows him space to work without a full back over-lapping. Some better full-backs find ways to snuff him out but against mediocre opposition, he’s dangerous. He produced an array of crosses and cut-backs such as the deep ball Jelavic headed over early on, the early diagonal ball in that Delaney nearly put into his own net and the cut-back from the bye-line that Davies skied in the second half.

The only disappointment is that we become too one dimensional in looking for Elmo. It seems to be an unwritten rule that no-one else crosses from the right if he’s on – they just wait for him to arrive.

Tom Huddlestone – 6

Another below par effort. He kept the ball well well at times but was guilty of lacking ambition too often. As a team we passed sideways and backwards too much in the first half and then resorted to trying to go long in behind them. I think it’s up to Tom to change that mentality, to try and play the ball into the feet off the strikers and the generate some forward momentum. As with most of the calendar year, he’s playing too methodically and isn’t hurting the opposition with his passing.

Jake Livermore – 5

Finished the game strongly and made Jelavic’s goal with a good challenge and an excellent through ball. Before that he’d looked a player lacking in confidence and happy to offload the ball as soon as he got it. He needs to find some belief in himself because he had a decent game against Man City and grew into this one. He’s the fittest guy on the pitch most weeks, he wins the ball back in good areas and he can carry it or pass it well. He’s just not playing his game – he looks like someone who’s just caught a hand grenade without a pin.

Mo Diame – 6

His least impressive game for us so far but still showed everyone what we’ve been missing from midfield. As guilty as the rest of the midfield of not taking the game to them enough in the first half. He was always looking to link up with Robertson which worked well but when it wasn’t on, he just slowed attacks down. What he does bring is a willingness to get into box and a fantastic sense of timing. For his goal, he laid the ball off just before Hernandez shot was blocked and then as Robertson lined up a cross, he made a tremendous run towards the six yard box and was rewarded for it.

Andy Robertson – 8

Another fantastic display from the young man. His pace takes him into excellent attacking positions and he’s single minded once he gets there. He wants to put the ball into an area where strikers can attack it. Like Elmo, he produced a variety of crosses mixing it up with balls fired hard and low. He’s not afraid to take a shot on either and confidence exudes from every pore. Defensively he can be naïve and the majority of the opposing threat still comes down his side but that’s improving with each game.

Nikica Jelavic – 7

It’s great to see his hard work being rewarded with goals. He doesn’t always look the most technically gifted player but he has an incredible work ethic and defends from the front. With or without the ball he’s constantly on the move. I’d like to see us play to his feet more often because our best moments in the game came when we played off him rather than giving him 60 yards balls to fight for. Took his goal with real aplomb.

Abel Hernandez – 5

We need to be patient with him because he’s short of fitness and adapting to a new club in a new league. He looked lost in the game and was rarely any help to Jelavic. He didn’t win headers or get hold of the ball. Most surprisingly he looked really slow. He got outpaced by Damien Delaney in the first half and then had the chance to run the ball into their empty half on the break from a counter but was caught really quickly. We’ve seen enough to suggest he’s dangerous around the box and hopefully the rest of his game will come with fitness.

Subs:

Gaston Ramirez – n/a

Stylish player with a lovely left foot but you can see why he’s not made an impression in English football. He’s lightweight and doesn’t play with a lot of urgency. An ideal substitute in the game though as he helped hold on to the ball when in a winning position.

Liam Rosenior – n/a

Smart decision to take off Robertson, who still tires late in games, for a solid defender like Rosenior. He kept Puncheon quiet and helped ensure they didn’t create any momentum.

Alex Bruce - n/a

The Gaffer:

Steve Bruce – 8

Finally went back to the 3-5-2 which has seemed an obvious move for a few weeks. I’m not sure why he dispersed with it really. Strangely went back to it on the back of a very good performance last week. In fact I’d go as far as to say we played better last week and got nothing than we did this when we won. The difference being the standard of the opposition.

He made good substitutions at key times. We were perhaps lucky to nick the second goal. We certainly weren’t going for one. Several attacks prior had fizzed out as we chose to keep hold of the ball and slow the game down rather than commit anyone. We also had two set-pieces were all three centre-halves stayed back. I suspect Bruce feels we’ve been naïve in games were we’ve led and wanted to ensure that we maintained defensive shape at the expense of attacking intent.

When it works, credit is due.

The Assem Allam press conference: More questions than answers

Things Assem & I agree on:

He has a simple mind.

It is best the FA don’t allow teams to be called Red-bottomed FC.

He should ensure the club goes to a good home.

There are some backwards councilors in Hull.

He is not a “dictorial”. I’m not sure anyone is. Maybe whoevers job it is to think up new words?

Things I know are bullshit:

The official name of the club has not contained the word Tigers for 110 years. The company name has contained the word since 2000. No-one else in the world thinks the “official” name is Hull City Tigers apart from Assem Allam.

Arsenal Gunners is NOT different to Hull Tigers. It’s the same crime.

24 hours from December 1^st or April 9^th is not September 10^th. No matter how many times you claim it is.

This is definitely related to his fall out with Hull City council – either directly or indirectly due to the stadium being out of his reach.

There is no “silent majority”. Only silence.

Changing a club’s 110 year old name is a misuse that the FA should protecting against.

Assem Allam does not have the money to make Hull City a top five club. I admire ambition but that is just crazy. Changing the name will not change that. In Ehab Allam’s wildest dreams, the name change is worth £10m per season. Or half a Manchester City substitute’s wife’s dog’s signing on fee.

The only instability at Hull City it that being caused by Assem Allam.

He will not give the club away. A £70m+ debt is not free.

There was no secret sponsor willing to pay £1m extra per season depending on the name change unless Assem Allam is calling his son a blatant liar?

Fans do not contribute financially to the club. Nonsense. We’ve paid a lot of money for a lot of years.

There are no Premier League clubs between Wigan and Rotterdam or Newcastle and Birmingham.

Things I couldn’t explain using Google, Siri or the Encyclopedia Britannica:

Where did David Burns get his jacket from?

Is it better to by fishing tackle or takeaway food? What if you don’t live near a lake?

What Nissan have got to do with anything? Are they the mystery sponsor?

If a tree falls in the KC Stadium on a non-matchday, would anyone hear it?

If not being a “global” club in the Premier League is unsustainable – how do the other 14 survive?

Would Red-bottomed FC wear shorts or just thongs?

If only the club “Hull City” is for sale, is he keeping the council?

Who would buy KFC from the KC Stadium on a non-matchday?

What IS the problem here?

Nations represented in black & amber

How many different nations have been represented in Black and Amber over the years? Using the 209 FIFA members as a guide, I started to make a list. Place of Birth or International representation counted as criteria.Where more than one, a few of the most famous examples are used.

Count  = 50.

Algeria - Kamel Ghilas
Angola - Rui Marques, Manucho
Argentina - Adrian Caceres
Antigua and Barbuda - Marc Joseph
Australia - Jason Van Blerk, Richard Garcia
Austria - Martin Pusic
Bermuda - Kyle Lightbourne
Bosnia-Herzegovina - Eldin Jakupović
Brazil - Geovanni, Adriano Basso
Canada - Patrick Dickinson
Cayman Islands - Jamie Wood
Côte d'Ivoire - Yann Ekra
Croatia - Nikica Jelavic
Denmark - Viggo Jensen, Henrik Pedersen
Egypt - Amr Zaki
England - Raich Carter, Ken Wagstaff, Dean Windass
Faroe Islands - Julian Johnsson
Finland - Mauno Rintanen
France - Bernard Mendy
Gabon - Daniel Cousin
Germany - Nick Proschwitz
Greece - Stelios Giannakopoulos
Grenada - Delroy Facey
Guinea - Kamil Zayatte
Guyana - Leon Cort
Honduras - Maynor Figueroa
Hungary - Peter Halmosi, Peter Gulacsi
India - Paddy Mills
Italy - Vito Mannone
Jamaica - Theo Whitmore, Ian Goodison, Marlon King
Netherlands - Richard Sneekes, George Boateng, Jan Venegoor Of Hesslink
New Zealand - Heremaia Ngata
Nigeria - Jay-Jay Okocha, Seyi Olofinjana
Northern Ireland - Alan Fettis, Roy Carroll, Stuart Elliott
Norway - Joshua King
Peru - Nolberto Solano
Portugal - Sergio Leite, Ricardo Vaz Te
Republic of Ireland - Ken De Mange, Caleb Folan, Paul McShane
Scotland - Ian McKechnie, Billy Bremner, Paul Hunter
Senegal - Ibrahima Sonko
Seychelles - Kevin Betsy
Slovenia - Robert Koren
South Africa - George Wienand
Spain - Antonio Doncel, Daniel Ayala
St. Kitts and Nevis - Kevin Francis
St. Lucia - Colin Alcide
Switzerland - Eldin Jakupović
Trinidad and Tobago - Clint Marcelle, Tony Warner
Tunisia - Tijani Belaid
USA - Jozy Altidore, Brad Guzan
Wales - Boaz Myhill
Zambia - Iain Hesford