All of Hull City’s first five matches in the Premier League have come with intriguing narratives, but ahead of Sunday’s game with Everton, it is hard to sense anything other than a cagey game being in store, but that is purely down to the biggest strength of both sides.
‘Attack is the best form of defence’ isn’t the phrase anyone would associate with how Sergej Jakirovic and David Moyes’ sides have started the campaign, having conceded just seven goals in eight combined fixtures whilst having two of the division’s best-performing goalkeepers in the form Konstantinos Tzolakis and Jordan Pickford.
Like City, the Toffees have also been extremely comfortable without the lion’s share of the ball, averaging less than 50 percent in four matches but remaining unbeaten in the process whilst boasting a rock-solid defensive of James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite in the process which such strong underlying defensive numbers
Hull will, obviously, be hoping to avoid a repeat of the opening period at Newcastle on Sunday – or throughout the rest of the campaign for that matter – whilst if Jakirovic’s side are as resolute as they were beforehand, coupled with a replication of the second-half on Tyneside, there is certainly scope for a positive result.
Unfortunately, after bringing plenty of energy off the bench in that defeat, Tim Iroegbunam looks to have been denied the chance to help cause maximum damage to his former side, whilst the potential for Mohamed Ali-Cho to earn a first start after his goalscoring cameo will also be up for debate. There is the added bonus that Nobel Mendy looks set to return after a concussion absence.
During the Newcastle game, it is fair to say that the Tigers’ right side was seen as a weakness by Mathias Jaissle with Harvey Barnes a constant threat as proven by two assists, and whilst a different style of winger, Jack Grealish is certainly capable of similar exploits for Everton when performing at maximum capacity, whilst the majority of the Merseysiders attacking play, again, runs through Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Thierno Barry also looks much-improved compared to this time 12 months ago, and it will certainly be intriguing to see how he fares against the likes of Mendy, John Egan and Semi Ajayi, as well as his aforementioned supporting cast who are capable of mixing their games up.
It would be no surprise if this match follows a similar pattern to the 0-0 draw against Aston Villa on September 5th but with a slight improvement in attacking quality from both sides, given they have averaged over 1 goal per game thus far.
