Hull City 3 Burnley 0: The Tigers serve up a Boxing Day treat

Hull City bounced back from last week’s disappointing defeat at Rotherham to clinically dispatch fifth placed Burnley at the KC Stadium. 

Haworth Park - A world away from the KC Stadium

The Tigers have struggled against Burnley in recent seasons, particularly in Premier League meetings in which the Clarets have won all four games. Talk of hoodoos and bogey teams from City fans meant the game might as well have not taken place. Burnley should have just been awarded the three points! It’s all nonsense of course – an easy excuse for poor performances but it is at least a coincidence that they often come against Burnley.

City 4-4-2

Allan McGregor

Moses Odubajo – Harry Maguire – Curtis Davies – Andy Robertson

Ahmed Elmohamady – Jake Livermore – David Meyler – Sam Clucas

Mo Diame – Abel Hernandez

This was my second game of the day. I went along to watch “Hullclassico”. A Boxing Day local derby in North East Counties Division One between Hall Road Rangers and Hull United at a windy Haworth Park. The pitch was heavier than Jan Molby sitting on Jon Parkin’s shoulders which made for a pretty low quality game. It’s a decent setting though. They serve a decent pint which you can drink while you watch the game. It’s a world away from Championship football. Some positive. Some negative. That quality for one. There’s great honesty on display and bundles of effort which I appreciate but I also appreciate the quality you get at the top level. Hall Road won 2-1 if you were wondering.

For the first fifteen minutes at the KC, as Burnley tried to make an early breakthrough, there were elements of that earlier match. Burnley play unashamedly simple football. They put the ball into the channels for Andre Gray to drag centre halves out of position or they hit a long diagonal looking for the head of Sam Vokes or one of the wide players in behind a full back. It did turn City time and again but never looked like creating a goal. Harry Maguire coped well with Gray’s threat and our two full backs, disastrous last week, were tremendous.

The first half was scruffy. Neither side created much with only strikes from range by Boyd for them and Diame for us working the respective keepers. City worked the ball well up two thirds of the pitch but lacked a focal point up front with Diame wandering to little effect and leaving Hernandez isolated. Jake Livermore was the pick of the City players. He worked box to box tremendously, carried the ball strongly, passed well and was quicker than Joey Barton to everything. Barton resorted to assault to get anywhere near Jake but in his defence, it wasn’t his usual thuggery – just complete and utter inadequacy.

Half time: Hull City 0 Burnley 0

The Tigers started the second half well and worked crossing positions for Livermore, who brilliantly outfought Barton and Marney, and Robertson which saw Clucas and then Hernandez head wide. Before the break, we hadn’t always crossed when we had the chance, particularly from the left, and lacked bodies in the box. That was starting to be remedied. When we eventually made the breakthrough it looked a bit like something from Burnley’s “playbook”. Maguire switched play from right to left and Clucas showed them how to attack space wide before lifting in a cross that found Livermore waiting and he magnificently volleyed back across Heaton and into the far corner [1-0]. The goal came off the back of both sets of supporters trying to lift their teams. In fairness to them, the Burnley fans continued to be loud even after falling behind.

City really turned the screw after the goal and looked likely to add a second. Clucas wasted a brilliant crossing position after a fantastic dummy by Hernandez and then curled in a corner which Maguire met but headed over. The visitors then squandered their big chance to equalise when Marney’s cross was poorly back heeled in the box by Maguire, a rare gaffe, and Gray smashed wide from eight yards. The Burnley fans were so sure he’d score that they celebrated anyway. Diame wasted a great opportunity to seal it when he nicked the ball on half way and decided to shoot – from half way – rather than feeding Hernandez through. Hernandez made sure it didn’t matter though when he ran on to Diame’s pass on the right, cut inside and beautifully smashed in to the far corner [2-0].

Burnley made three subs, including the departure of George Boyd who got a lovely reception from the City fans, and despite Joey Barton being absolutely garbage in midfield, he wasn’t one of them. They did put a little bit of pressure on winning some set pieces and a couple of corners. Steve Bruce made some changes as you’d expect with another game in 48 hours and we ended up with Sam Clucas playing as the lone striker. I saw him do that job for Chesterfield against us in pre-season (stop shouting “It’s only pre-season”) and he was impressive. He’s got really intelligent movement and he’ll always offer a ball in behind. I think we underutilise him in that area when we’re struggling for strikers. He had a fantastic fifteen minutes and scored a clincher after Robertson brilliantly dribbled through them and passed to Snodgrass who, at the second attempt, hit the bye line and cut back for Clucas to lift the ball in off the bar [3-0]. He then almost nabbed a fourth when Elmo got in behind and laid off to him to miss the far post by inches.

Full time: Hull City 3 Burnley 0

It barely needs saying but this performance was a billion times better than last week at Rotherham. It’s hard to believe it’s the same group of players. There was so much more quality, composure and control of the game. We defended excellently, Maguire and Davies being almost immaculate, and completely smothered them in midfield.

It’s not particularly surprising though because it’s obvious that the problem with this City team isn’t quality. We’ve got that in abundance. It’s inconsistency. In some games, particularly away, we don’t fancy the battle. Last week I slaughtered the team – and rightly so, they were garbage – and picked out four players who I don’t think are having the right effect on the team. Diame, because he just doesn’t fit anywhere, Elmohamady and Davies because their contractual situation seems to be affecting their attitude and Huddlestone because he hasn’t been good enough for months.

Steve Bruce said this week that talks have started to sort out that contractual situation. If the club can tie down Elmohamady and Davies and end speculation about their future then I’d absolutely keep them. I should have said that last week really but it just didn’t seem likely. Both players need to show commitment to the club though – as well as the club providing it in return.

Hoodoo? What chuffing hoodoo?

Rotherham 2 Hull City 0: It's time for Steve Bruce to get rid of four players

Hull City suffered a third defeat in five games with a tame and demoralising showing at Rotherham United’s New York Stadium.

It was a low quality contest for the most part between a home team who by their manager’s admission are nowhere near good enough for this level and the visiting Tigers who continue to produce performances that defy the ability in the squad and the flair and confidence on display just a few weeks ago.

What settled the contest were horrendous mistakes in either half by City’s full backs. Odubajo stupidly conceded a penalty before the break after he’d dallied in clearing a corner and tripped one of theirs. The corner itself came from Robertson stopping to appeal for a throw-in and allowing Danny Ward to progress down our left. Just naïve all round. Robertson then lost possession outside his own box in the second half allowing Joe Newell to rob him and smash home a second to add to Lee Frecklington’s penalty. The finish was outstanding but the situation utterly needless.

Whether Rotherham would have scored without our assistance will never be known but it looked unlikely. They’re a poor side who set up with five in midfield at home and rarely committed men into the opposition half. I saw on Twitter some of their fans moaning that Danny Ward hasn’t scored all season but when he’s asked to plough such a lonely furrow up front – it’s no wonder.

City were well below par with many of the same issues that blighted the first half against Reading. Slow to move the ball and unable to get it to stick up front so players could get up in support. Akpom did a particularly poor job of holding on to the ball, Maloney, who thoroughly deserved to start, wasted possession and set pieces with regularity, Hernandez and Elmohamady were passengers and Odubajo crossed poorly.

In spite of that, we should still have come away with four or five goals. Akpom missed a sitter from a Hernandez cross in the first half when he tried to chest the ball home about a foot off the ground. He then hit the post twice in the second half, once unluckily and the other really poorly, and also had a shot saved at the near post when Hernandez was wide open in the six yard box. Maguire headed wide from a late cross when he was unmarked at the far post. Along with over sixty percent of the possession and ten corners City had plenty of opportunities to impose themselves on the game but never did.

I was fuming coming out of the ground at the end and did call the players and manager some nasty names on the drive home but in the cold light of day, our situation is still a good one. We’re three points off the automatic promotion places at Christmas. I’d have bitten your hand off for that during the tumultuous summer.

The form is worrying though. I make this six games in a row that our performance has been at least half awful. Even the two recent wins were unimpressive. It isn’t a new problem either. Many of this squad were responsible for last season’s needless relegation and continue to let the manager down. Without being overly dramatic, with the January transfer window approaching, I really think that if Steve Bruce is going to remain as our manager then he has to get rid of at least four players and replace them with players who are hungrier to succeed.

I’d start with four players who are out of contract in the summer, who have been the subject of speculation and all but one of whom consistently defy their ability with their performances. Ahmed Elmohamady has been a disgrace this season. We keep making excuses for him because he has been a magnificent servant to the club but he just doesn’t deserve it. He performs when he wants to, he no longer feels the need to track back and he has the demeanour of a man who would rather be in Syria than Hull. His agent spent the last summer trying to engineer him a move away and he’s never been the same since.

Tom Huddlestone has been a useless facet of our midfield for most of the past two years. His career at City peaked with a virtuoso performance in the 6-0 drubbing of Fulham on Boxing Day 2013 and you can count the number of good performances since then on two fingers. Apt. He’s fallen from looking like an England midfielder to being a sub for a Championship outfit. I give him credit for fronting up – he was the first person to come across and applaud the away fans at Rotherham when many of his mates scurried off quickly and his manager didn’t leave the technical area. But his time here has been unfulfilled and he needs to go.

Mo Diame might be the most talented player to pull on the black and amber but he’s a luxury the Championship rarely affords teams. We’ve no idea where to play him because, really, you have to build a team around him. He’s not a grafter which is OK when he’s producing something magical but not when he doesn’t. He’s got a value and we’d be better off with the money and a midfielder who can complement or improve on the Livermore/Meyler partnership.

The last one who has to go is Curtis Davies. Individually his performances haven’t been as bad as some. But ever since Michael Dawson arrived at City and took his captain’s armband, he’s been a shadow of the player he was. He played well earlier in the season but he plays for himself. We’ve seen recently with Daws’s absence the lack of leadership in our defence. Davies should be filling that hole but he’s not interested in doing so. He’s annoyed that he wasn’t given a new contract when he was flying here and resents that no offer has come this season. He’s biding his time here until something else comes along. Both the player and the club deserve better than that situation.

I want Bruce to achieve promotion here again. I’ve always liked the man. However I’m losing faith in his ability to motivate this group of players. The Championship is a tough league and winning games in it is never guaranteed. I don’t take it lightly and never will. But this squad is good enough to win it. Not a game but the whole league. It has every quality required to do so. We’re not seeing it though. At some point, and it’s coming very soon, either the manager will have to go or the players he can’t motivate will have to go. I still have (just about) enough faith in Steve Bruce to keep him and get shot of them.

Hull City 2 Reading 1: The view from the stands

Hull City struck late to defeat Reading at the KC Stadium and move within two points of the top of the Championship table again.

(C) Reuters

The Tigers produced a markedly improved second half performance to take the three points having toiled badly before the break. It was easily the worst half I’ve seen from them this season – having dodged the bullet at Leeds. However the players turned it around to do three things we’re not well known for: a) win on the telly, b) come from behind to win, and c) score a late winner.

City 4-4-2

Allan McGregor

Moses Odubajo – Harry Maguire – Curtis Davies – Andy Robertson

Ahmed Elmohamady – Jake Livermore – David Meyler – Sam Clucas

Abel Hernandez – Chuba Akpom

Hull City were sluggish right from the start. The options for the man on the ball were limited time and again and it resulted in possession slowing every time and the ball going sideways and backwards before someone tried to force an opening and gave Reading the ball. There was no-one individually to blame because the players waving their arms in frustration at not having a pass available were the same ones strolling around when their mates were put in the same position seconds later.

In addition to the lack of invention on the ball, City were wide open when Reading crossed half way with the five men in their midfield making intelligent runs between centre halves and full backs and our midfield not tracking them. Without Michael Dawson there was a lack of cohesion in the back four and a lack of organisation. Reading eventually punished this sloppiness but could already have been in front. Allan McGregor saved well from Danny Williams in the opening minute as the defence was pulled across leaving space down our right for Williams to get in behind and then a tremendous pass from McCleary split Maguire and Davies but Odubajo tracked Vydra and nicked the ball just as the Watford loanee was about to pull the trigger.

There was no such luck on the half hour as the defence got pulled across the pitch again and this time Nick Blackman produced an unerring finish into the far corner to leave McGregor stranded. It was lovely play from Reading as McCleary attacked Robertson on the left, passed across the box and both Williams and Vydra laid the ball off to leave Blackman free at the far post. Elmo had to be the one to track him as each of the back four moved across to meet runners [0-1].

City failed to produce a response to the goal as frustration grew amongst the crowd. Reading are a better team than their league position suggests and have a host of good players but they weren’t overly ambitious, had a centre half in midfield and were happy to waste time from early on and the game was easy for them. They were able to get men behind the ball very easily because we were slow to work the ball into their half and once it got there options were so limited that we just passed around in front of them. Davies had a toe-poke saved from a Maguire knock down and Blackman clipped the bar with a free kick for Reading.

It was a shocking half. The front two weren’t strong enough to hold on to the ball and were slow to show. Elmohamady was as ineffective as he has been for most of the season but he somehow evades criticism. Some people were surprised that time Steve Bruce dropped him but it was deserved then and he couldn’t argue now. Clucas was a willing runner but never looked like doing anything with possession and we rarely held on to the ball long enough to get our full backs over half way. David Meyler had his worst game of the season by some distance with loose touches and forced passes. Only Livermore showed anything like the bottle required in tough games and he made poor decisions in the final third and got himself booked in a frustrated stupor.

Half time: Hull City 0 Reading 1

Steve Bruce chose not to make any subs at half time. He rarely does but, given the unbelievable strength of the bench, he definitely should have in this game. He did send the players out after what Moses Odubajo succinctly told David Burns was a “rocket up the arse” and it showed with a little more urgency in possession and the creation of some chances.

Odubajo received a throw-in from Elmo, attacked the pace on the wide edge of the area and, after a 1-2 with Hernandez, got in behind the centre half but save the keeper smother his shot. Hernandez then beautifully took down a Robertson pass and instantly volleyed wide. In between Livermore struck from distance but the keeper held it. Momentum was growing but our play was still being undermined by those slow passes allowing Reading to recover their positions. The crowd sensed the shift though and began to get behind the players.

Bruce was preparing a double substitution with Snodgrass and Maloney getting ready when City broke through. Clucas was freed in behind, saw his path to goal closed and his shot blocked but found Elmo with a cut back and after his shot was blocked on the line, Hernandez poked the ball home from three yards [1-1].

It was all City from that point. I can’t recall a Reading shot in the second half. Akpom hit the side netting after Maguire brilliantly switched the ball to Robertson. Their keeper Bond (the goalie whose woeful performance for Watford against Leeds sealed our promotion three years ago) then handled outside the area with Elmo pressuring him and somehow only received a yellow card. I’m not sure I understand why it wasn’t red. It was on the left edge of the area rather than down the middle but if he hadn’t used his hands, Elmo would have had the ball and an empty goal. They were panicking at this stage. They were trying to kill time and turning every nothing situation into an argument to try and half our momentum.

Akpom should have punished them when he played a 1-2 with Hernandez and strode into the area but tried to left a shot over Bond and the keeper got something on it to send it over the bar. A fine save but he shouldn’t have had a sniff of it. Akpom then threw his toys out of the pram as he was substituted. The fourth official originally indicated that Odubajo was being withdrawn but Steve Bruce had a fit and the correct player was hooked. You’ll have to ask said official how he managed to mix up numbers two and nineteen! Snodgrass and Maloney replaced Akpom and Clucas before Diomande came on for Hernandez shortly after.

With stoppage time looming, Reading were reduced to ten men when the replacement left back stuck his head in low and got a slight kick off Odubajo. Then followed one of those situations were a player receives treatment on the pitch when he’s three yards from the touchline and well capable of walking. More time being eaten up. Just as we were wondering whether the referee would punish the time wasting, City won it. Odubajo received from Elmo and skinned their centre half. His pull back was controlled by Snodgrass who calmly laid off to Maloney. He cut inside and shot at goal, it was saved and from lord knows where, Jake Livermore arrived to smash the ball home [2-1]. Typically the board then went up with seven minutes on it! Fortunately, stoppage time passed without incident.

Full time: Hull City 2 Reading 1

The players deserve credit for turning a losing position into a winning one. That’s not something we do anywhere near enough and should be recognised when it happens. The second half performance was much improved and we dominated an opponent who looked frightened once we turned the screw.

It was still a worrying performance overall because there could be little argument over the team selection or system or personnel. Michael Dawson aside it was our best team and we toiled badly. Missing Daws’ leadership at the back is understandable but that was no excuse for the lack of bravery and sheer effort from attacking players. Too often this season we’ve struggled because we’ve not got performances out of players who are capable of much better. I thought we were over that but it’s obvious that it’s still our Achilles heel. The manager has to solve that problem. We can’t rely on a “rocket up the arse” half way through games to get results.