If there was such a thing, then this game definitely falls into said category!
After recording three wins in succession for the first time in just over two years, Hull City must back up what was arguably their best performance of the season at Southampton, in another crucial encounter with West Bromwich Albion in front of the Sky Sports cameras.
Stunning against the Saints
Embed from Getty ImagesRecent performances have seen City show a different side to their game on multiple occasions, but the victory at St Mary’s could prove to be a significant moment in the season – a reminder to outsiders that this squad is more than capable of competing with the top sides in the division.
Many eyebrows were raised at the decision to play no recognised centre-forward from the off. But in truth it was a tactical masterclass from Liam Rosenior, as for 45 minutes, the most possession-heavy side in the Championship were forced into making three errors, one of which led straight to Fabio Carvalho’s 36th minute goal.
It was also Anass Zaroury’s best performance so far, and in truth, the fact the Moroccan only had one goal to his name was somewhat unjust, as he ran Kyle Walker-Peters, the best full-back in the division based on underlying data, ragged – particularly in the dominant opening 45.
| Anass Zaroury stats – Southampton 1-2 Hull City | Total |
| Minutes Played | 83 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Touches | 50 |
| Shots on Target | 2 |
| Shots off Target | 4 |
| Shots Blocked | 1 |
| Successful Dribbles | 1 |
| Ground Duels (Won) | 8 (2) |
| Average Rating | 7.7 |
The second 45 epitomised just how the defence, 3 quarters of which featured as regulars in League One three years ago, continue to evolve along with the club’s overall progression. Whilst it was known to everybody that the home side would up the ante, six blocked shots and four off target out of a possible 12 was a testament to their resolve.
Backing it up against the Baggies
Embed from Getty ImagesAfter three consecutive away victories, it’s imperative that the Tigers look to address the inconsistent home form we’ve become accustomed to since winning three on the spin in HU3 between October and the end of November.
Rosenior spoke post-match on the South Coast that the 2-1 success has to be a “benchmark”, and to every fan, that is music to our ears as it was certainly our most effective performance for some time.
Let’s also face up to the fact that the previous 175 minutes of football at the MKM were extremely sub-par against Millwall and Swansea City, so improvement against Carlos Corberan’s well-drilled outfit is a must.
In the last two home outings, just five shots on target out of a possible 18 with the attacking armoury at Rosenior’s disposal was disappointing to say the least. Although they saw off Plymouth Argyle 3-0 in midweek, the Tigers’ attack must take solace from the fact that Ipswich Town did create 21 overall attempts in the 2-2 draw between them and West Brom on February 10th.
In fairness, the two sides have been weaker either at home in Hull’s case or on the road in Albion’s, so it’s anybody’s game at this point.
Opposition focus
Embed from Getty ImagesAs previously stated, West Brom’s form on the road has been way weaker than their form on home turf, which should again give Hull plenty of encouragement, regardless of four of those 19 points coming in their last two away trips.
The Spaniard in charge has gained a reputation as one of the best head coaches in the division since taking them from rock-bottom in the Championship to top-six contenders in the space of 14 months.
Based off SofaScore ratings, there have been a number of standout players in this Albion squad so far, with four averaging ratings in excess of 7.0 in the form of Alex Mowatt, John Swift, Cedric Kipre and Darnell Furlong.
Kipre in particular has been granted a new lease of life this season, being a key cog in the league’s third-strongest defence this season, conceding just 31 times in 33 games (Only Leicester City and Leeds United have shipped less with 26).
However, it’s the aforementioned Mowatt who has been Albion’s most consistent performer as per Sofascore ratings.
The former Leeds and Barnsley playmaker has only started 24 of his 31 league appearances to date, and has shown his capabilities in recent weeks, not dropping below a 7.0 rating in the period from February 3rd – present.
Mowatt has four assists to his name this season, as well as creating the same number of big chances, whilst his vision in the opposition’s half has also been laid bare for all to see, with a pass completion ratio of 80% on that front, and 90% overall.
In net, Alex Palmer is also one of the more underrated goalkeepers in the Championship, having played every minute of every league game so far, which includes an average concession of 0.94 goals per game, as well as a save percentage of 69.8 from 64 saves made across the entire campaign so far, highlighting Albion’s resolute back line.
Therefore, Hull must take their chances as and when they come, as it will take some getting past the 27-year-old.
Opposition view
Living and studying in the West Midlands means that I know quite a few West Brom supporters, and I spoke to one of those, my fellow Uni coursemate @CallumWBA, on his thoughts pre-game.
Albion’s form of late has been extremely mixed and has been inconsistent on the road this season, what do you put that down to?
At first glance it’s quite hard to tell much of a difference between how we set up tactically at home compared to how we do away.
It could be a lack of control with teams at home being more willing to give it more a go, playing with more urgency and pressing higher rather to how at The Hawthorns the away team are more often than not willing to give up possession to try and sit back more.
We’ve had four points from our last two away games at Ipswich and Plymouth, which are two tough places to go in the division so hopefully Corberan has found the right formula to pick up our away form.
How important is it that the club builds on the feel-good factor coming from the recent takeover developments?
It’s vital that we use the positive boost from Shilen Patel’s takeover of the club as we attempt to consolidate our position in the top six for the rest of the season. Hull City are an example of how much a takeover can lift up a club, with the days of a half empty stadium under the Allam ownership being long gone.
Hopefully he’ll be able to get more players who are running out of contract at the end of the year, such as Cedric Kipre and Alex Mowatt, to follow in the footsteps of Tom Fellows in signing a new contract with the club and we can continue to go from strength to strength with hopefully a play off campaign that awaits us at the end of the season.
Should that not come to fruition and we have another campaign in the Championship, hopefully the foundations will be put in place by Patel so it will be another year under Corberan where we are once again a competitive side.
The two head coaches for this fixture have gained stellar reputations for their methods, what has been the secret behind Carlos Corberan’s transformation at WBA?
Embed from Getty ImagesI alluded to this earlier. With how we play with much more control at home, a lot of it comes from the resurgence of Kipre and Mowatt – two players last season who were dismissed and looked like their futures was up in the air under Steve Bruce.
One of Corberan’s best qualities is how he’s managed to turn around several players’ Albion careers, up until his injury Matt Phillips was in brilliant form – another player who many thought wasn’t going to play too much of an influential role, but under Corberan had really stepped up to the plate.
Who are the main threats at present in this Albion side?
Since coming into the team, Fellows has looked a player of real quality. For a player who’s had one loan spell at Crawley Town where he wasn’t renowned for his end product there, his ability to get in behind and find a teammate is second to none in the side.
Everyone in the Championship knows that on his day Grady Diangana can be unplayable and produce a moment of magic. But since signing from Celtic, Mikey Johnston has looked a very sharp and direct winger, wanting to get on the ball and take on a defender. He’s getting goals as well with a very good finish against Plymouth on Tuesday so he’s someone who Albion fans have really taken a liking to.
Albion did a number on Hull at The Hawthorns despite conceding the majority of the ball, will this tactic be deployed once again at the MKM Stadium?
I think if we are to get something from the game on Saturday we’re going to need the likes of Cedric Kipre and Okay Yokuslu to be at their best and making sure we don’t concede many high quality chances for hull to take advantage of.
For me, Tom Fellows has to start with the threat on the counter he provides as he showed in another top 6 clash away to Ipswich recently.
We’re most likely going to be missing Brandon Thomas-Asante through injury so that will likely be a blow as we’ll be losing his energy and link up play. It will be interesting to see if Carlos Corberan continues with Andi Weimann up front of if he goes down another route with perhaps John Swift or a false nine, or even Jed Wallace up front as he did in one of our few successful away games this season in the 4-0 win at Deepdale vs Preston North End.
Who do you view as Hull City’s biggest threat?
Embed from Getty ImagesIn terms of threats, it will be no surprise that Jaden Philogene is the player that I’m most weary of!
Fortunately for us in November, Philogene was injured that day, but alongside the likes of Fabio Carvalho and Anass Zaroury, Hull’s attack is one that looks like it could cause a lot of trouble for the majority of teams in this league on their day.
Score Prediction: Hull City 1-1 West Bromwich Albion
I think I’m going to sit on the fence and say that it’s going to be a 1-1 draw.
If West Brom get something from this game then I think we have to be the team who score first, especially with the attacking talent that Hull have. Regardless, I can see Saturdays match being a very close encounter and a tight game.
My Prediction
As Callum touched on, I expect a well-contested and high-quality affair between the two sides, but Hull must be ruthless as well as use a high amount of possession to greater effect than in recent home displays, and than what was shown in B71 in November.
Their strong defence against Hull’s mouth-watering attack makes for an extremely intriguing tactical battle, but we must be aware of their counter-attacking ability which was the difference in the 3-1 defeat before Christmas.
A draw would definitely be a good result overall, but to continue with the recent momentum, it would be a statement for the Tigers to overtake West Brom, who have been in the top six since a 2-0 win over Ipswich Town on November 25th.
Although it’s a chance for City to record four league wins on the spin for the first time since beating Barnsley, Birmingham City, Cardiff City and Millwall back in November 2021, I can’t see it happening as much as I clearly would love it to!
I echo Callum’s verdict in that it will be a draw, but with more attacking quality. 2-2.
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