City back to winning ways as Pedro Martins looks on
Pictures by Hull City
Hull City 2 - 1 Wigan Athletic
Sky Bet Championship
MKM Stadium
Attendance: 14,669
By Sam Hawcroft, Hull City correspondent
Watched by the hot favourite for the Tigers’ managerial vacancy, a transformed City managed to come from behind and beat an in-form Wigan side to register their first home victory since the end of August.
Just days after the sacking of Shota Arveladze, Acun Ilicali appears to have moved swiftly for 52-year-old former Olympiakos manager Pedro Martins – who arrived in Hull yesterday and was soon pictured posing next to a smiling Tigers chairman inside the MKM Stadium.
The Tigers, having lost five on the bounce, were up against a Wigan side who had won four straight away matches. And Martins wouldn’t have been much encouraged by what he saw in the first quarter of an hour.
When Wigan scored from a sucker-punch set piece in the 14th minute, there wouldn’t have been many who gave the Tigers much hope of turning things around. Another huge dent in their already shocking goal difference looked on the cards.
But, with more than a touch of TypicalCity (the logic that applies when City do the exact opposite of what everyone expects them to do), interim coach Andy Dawson’s reshuffled Tigers, with Ozan Tufan in central midfield, found their mojo and ground out a precious victory.
The match had kicked off with a minute’s silence for the stadium crush disaster in Indonesia, and a tentative first 10 minutes followed, during which the Tigers pounced on a couple of loose balls but neither side showed any real threat.
In the 13th minute, there was some good link-up play between Dimitris Pelkas and Dogukan Sinik, and the latter lofted a ball into the area in the direction of the excellent Cyrus Christie, but he couldn’t quite stretch to divert it home.
But a minute later, this moment of promise was punctured when the Tigers yet again found themselves behind early on. Thelo Aasgaard whipped in a ball from the right and it was perfectly met by the head of Will Keane – unmarked near the right-hand post – and the ex-Tiger planted it in from about six yards. Former Tigers scoring against us – also very TypicalCity.
The crowd sat back and steeled themselves for this being the first of many, given recent form – but just seven minutes later, the Tigers hit back. An actual Hull City goal – you could have been forgiven for forgetting what one looked like.
A wonderful diagonal delivery from Lewie Coyle deep on the right found Pelkas at the back post. He got ahead of his man and nodded it over keeper Ben Amos. What a shot in the arm – how City had desperately needed this to boost their shattered confidence of late.
This was followed by a bit of handbags between Lewie Coyle and another former Tiger, Josh Magennis, who both earned bookings for squaring up to each other.
On the half-hour mark, Nathan Baxter did well to smother a 30-yard free kick by Max Power which was hit with, er, max power.
Christie then did well to challenge James McClean, who had failed to clear the danger in his own area, and Coyle followed up with a strong challenge, winning the Tigers a corner. Another corner followed, which found the head of Alfie Jones, and it took a brilliant reflex save by Amos to deny a certain goal, tipping it over the bar.
A minute before half-time, Christie shot over from 20 yards. This was much, much better stuff from City, and, this time, the boo boys stayed silent as they left the field.
In the first couple of minutes after the break, Oscar shot well wide from about 20 yards. Just a sighter, for now…
In the 50th minute, Baxter flung out a leg to deny Keane from a few yards out – a wonderful reaction save that kept the Tigers in the game. Aasgaard then shot well over moments later, to wolf-whistles from the City fans in the North Stand.
Five minutes later, Greaves stood up to Magennis in the area and conceded a corner. It fell to Tom Naylor, who ballooned it over from about 15 yards.
Every City man was back in their own half as another Wigan corner came from a deflected shot by Power. Wigan weren’t immune to sloppiness, though, as Power mistimed a through ball and it went tamely out for a goal kick.
City regained possession after Oscar was bundled over about 35 yards out, and there came three corners in succession – and suddenly it was Wigan who had everyone back. Amos punched well out, and eventually Coyle put it out for a goal kick.
But the Tigers continued to surge forward, and Oscar only just failed to connect right in front of goal.
Just after the hour mark, Dawson made his first changes – Greg Docherty for Pelkas, and Ryan Longman for Sinik.
Docherty’s first action of the game was to force a corner for the Tigers - and in almost a carbon-copy of Wigan’s opening goal, Callum Elder’s kick found Oscar (in a more central position than Keane had been), who leapt into the air, and his bullet header flew past Amos. Duh-duh-duh-duh… Andy Dawson! sang the jubilant North Stand.
Wigan’s defenders were a bit at sixes and sevens as Longman then tried to muscle his way through, leaving Docherty to pick up the ball on the byline and cross it back in. Christie side-footed it towards goal, and a goal kick was given, but both he and Oscar made it known that they thought it should have been a corner.
A snap header from Magnennis was well held by Baxter moments later, before substitute Charlie Wyke saw a good chance go just wide.
A nervy last 10 minutes ensued, during which City almost broke away, but Oscar overhit his through ball to Longman. Slater was booked for a mistimed tackle on Wigan substitute Graeme Shinnie, and from the resulting free kick, fellow sub Ashley Fletcher headed over.
There then came a standing ovation for Oscar, who was replaced by Tobias Figueiredo a minute before time, and it was backs to the wall for the final five minutes of injury time as the home fans chanted “City till I die”. City hanging on to a slender lead as the clock ticks agonisingly down is never something for the faint-hearted, but hang on they did. Each one of them looked reinvigorated, up for it – hardly recognisable from five days ago.
As we look to enter another new era with Martins (probably) at the helm, there’s hope yet that the Tigers can charge back up the table.