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HULL CITY v WEST BROMWICH ALBION
Barclays Premier League
Saturday 22nd March 2014, 3:00pm
KC Stadium

The Baggies travel to the KC Stadium looking to build on last weekend’s crucial and morale-boosting victory over Swansea City, however, boss Pepe Mel will have to cope with a lengthening injury and suspension list with vice-captain Jonas Olsson the latest addition.

With Hull not in the best form at home, the game gives Albion not only a realistic chance to pick up three vital points but to also drag the Tigers right into the relegation mix. The Baggies, along with the rest of the teams currently in the bottom four or five, will be hoping Hull, much like Wigan last season, have their focus firmly on the FA Cup at the expense of league form.

Albion will have to be wary of the threat posed by former striker Shane Long who joined Hull in January. With the Baggies' defence desperately lacking pace Long could pose serious problems for Gareth McAuley & co. At the other end of the pitch will be another familiar face - Curtis Davies. Whilst the defender is disliked by many Albion fans for the way he left the club, there can be no denying when on form he is one of the Premier League's better defenders, perhaps exactly the type of defender the Baggies are now crying out for.

With neither team in the best of form it looks like being a tight and nervy match, one perhaps neither team can afford to lose.

Prediction: Hull City 1-1 Albion

MATCH NOTES

The game will be the 50th league & cup meeting between Albion and Hull City. The Baggies currently have a slight edge in terms of victories with 18 compared to The Tigers' 17.

The Baggies' last game on this date came in 2003 when a Geoff Horsfield goal saw them beaten 1-0 by Birmingham City in a Premier League fixture at St Andrews. The club's last win on March 22 came in 2002 when a Bob Taylor strike gave Gary Megson's promotion chasing team a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

Hull's last game on March 22 came in 2009 when they suffered a 1-0 Premier League defeat at Wigan Athletic.

The Baggies will be looking to record successive Premier League away wins for the first time since November 2012.

Albion have had 16 different scorers this season in the Premier League, the joint-most along with Arsenal.

Hull have picked up seven points from their 10 league games in 2014, the joint-worst record in the division alongside Cardiff.

Albion's last six games: Swansea City (A) 2-1; Manchester United (H) 0-3; Fulham (H) 1-1; Chelsea (H) 1-1; Crystal Palace (A) 1-3; Liverpool (H) 1-1.

City's last six games: Manchester City (H) 0-2; Sunderland (H, FAC) 3-0; Newcastle United (H) 1-4; Brighton & Hove Albion (H, FAC replay) 2-1; Cardiff City (A) 4-0; Brighton & Hove Albion (A, FAC) 1-1.

TEAM NEWS

Albion

Baggies’ boss Pepe Mel will again have to cope with a number of missing first choice players for the trip to Humberside.

Jonas Olsson starts his two match ban after receiving his tenth caution of the season last weekend at Swansea and he is joined on the sidelines by the injured Chris Brunt, Morgan Amalfitano and Diego Lugano (all knee), and Claudio Yacob and Billy Jones (both hamstring). 

Academy graduates Donervorn Daniels and Liam O’Neil are both in the travelling squad.

Gareth McAuley will captain the team in the absence of both Brunt and Olsson.

Squad from: Foster, Myhill, Reid, Ridgewell, McAuley, Dawson, Morrison, Sinclair, Dorrans, Mulumbu, Gera, Sessegnon, Anichebe, Vydra, Berahino, Bifouma, O'Neil, D Daniels

Hull City

Hull boss Steve Bruce will be without George Boyd with the winger beginning his three-match suspension for spitting at Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart during last week's defeat to Manchester City.

Former Albion defender Paul McShane misses the game due to an ankle injury.

Squad from: McGregor, Harper, Davies, Faye, Bruce, Figueroa, Rosenior, Chester, Huddlestone, Elmohamady, Meyler, Quinn, Livermore, Jelavic, Long, Fryatt, Koren, Sagbo, Aluko.

QUOTES

Baggies' boss Pepe Mel:

Hull City and West Brom both need to win. It’s a big match and very, very difficult for us. I think their season has been very, very good - they play well. They have a clear way to win. Their last result against Man City was not so good but Hull City played very well - and it’s a difficult match for us.

“Now Jonas Olsson is suspended - in my head is another way to win the next match. It is important for us now that the players know two different ways to play and win.

“I played against Hull in pre-season with Betis. They have a good stadium, good fans and a good club. Hull won but it’s no problem. You remember in the last press conference I told you Betis played Swansea, you think who won? Swansea. And then, no problem last Saturday!”

www.wba.co.uk

City boss Steve Bruce:

It’s a huge game, there’s no disputing that. We’re down to single figures in terms of games remaining and if you can win one against a side in the bottom half of the division, we all know what that can do for you.

“It’s a big game for both clubs and if we can win it, it would set us up very nicely for the most pivotal couple of weeks. We’ve got back-to-back away games after this one in quick succession, so if we can get off to a good start on Saturday that would be terrific.

“We’re under no illusion as to how difficult (this league) is and there are ten or 11 teams saying the same. Usually, there are three divisions in the Premier League, the top, middle and bottom. This season, there are only really two or three teams that are safe (in the middle) and there are ten or 11 still separated by just five or six points.

“It’s not about playing attractive football anymore, it’s about results and we need to go and win a couple. I’ve said since day one that we need ten wins, I’m not going to change from that.”

www.hullcitytigers.com

MATCH ODDS

Result

Albion Win: 12/5, Hull City Win: 23/20, Draw: 23/10.

First Goalscorer

Albion: Anichebe 15/2, Sessegnon 8/1, Thievy 9/1, Berahino 9/1, Vydra 10/1, Morrison 14/1, Dorrans 14/1, Sinclair 16/1, Gera 20/1, Mulumbu 20/1, Dawson 25/1, McAuley 25/1, Reid 33/1.

Hull City: Long 11/2, Jelavic 11/2, Sagbo 15/2, Aluko 15/2, Fryatt 15/2, Koren 11/1, Meyler 16/1, Huddlestone 20/1, Livermore 20/1, El-Mohamady 20/1, Quinn 25/1, Davies 25/1, Faye 33/1, Figueroa 33/1.

www.williamhill.com

REFEREE

Chris Foy (Merseyside)

Foy has officiated two Albion games so far this season - the 3-2 defeat at home to Manchester City in December and the 3-1 defeat away at Crystal Palace last month.

He refereed three Albion games last season - the 1-0 victory at home to Reading in September, the 2-1 defeat at Newcastle in October and the 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road in December.

The Merseyside official has taken charge of just one Hull game during 2013/14 - the 1-1 draw at Swansea City in December.

Foy has issued 75 yellow cards and six reds in the 27 games he has officiated so far this season.

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets for away supporters are no longer available to purchase.

WEATHER FORECAST

Light cloud, 8°C.

FIXTURE HISTORY

Albion's first league meetings with Hull City took place in the Second Division during the 1905/06 season. The first game between the sides, at The Hawthorns, ended in a one all draw - Ted Pheasant the Albion goalscorer with a penalty. City won the return fixture with ease, running out 4-0 winners at Anlaby Road.

The Baggies' biggest win against Hull came in April 1930 when they recorded a 7-1 victory at The Hawthorns with Jimmy Cookson netting four of the Albion goals.

City's best win of 5-1 came at Anlaby Road in April 1910, Jack Smith hitting a hat-trick for the hosts

Albion's last league victory over the 'Tigers' came at the KC Stadium on 12 January 2008 when goals from Kevin Phillips, James Morrison and Roman Bednar guided 10 man Albion to a 3-1 victory.

The Baggies are unbeaten on their last four visits to Hull.

The two teams have met three times in Premier League action with Hull winning once and the other two games ending in draws.

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

(Click on game to view)

Saturday 31 January 2009 - Hull City 2-2 Albion - Premier League - KC Stadium
Saturday 23 February 2008 - Albion 1-2 Hull City - League Championship - The Hawthorns
Saturday 12 January 2008 - Hull City 1-3 Albion - League Championship - KC Stadium
Saturday 8 May 1993 - Albion 3-1 Hull City - League Division Two - The Hawthorns
Wednesday 10 April 1991 - Albion 1-1 Hull City - Second Division - The Hawthorns
Saturday 10 December 1988 - Albion 2-0 Hull City - Second Division - The Hawthorns

LAST LEAGUE MEETING AT THE KC STADIUM

Hull City 2-2 Albion
Barclays Premier League
Saturday 31st January 2009, 3:00pm

Hull City: Duke, Ricketts, Turner, Zayatte, Dawson, Mendy, Garcia (Folan 81), Ashbee, Marney, Kilbane, Fagan. Subs not used: Myhill, Doyle, Geovanni, Hughes, France, Manucho.

Goalscorers: Mendy 44, Fagan 69.

Booked: Dawson, Mendy.

Albion: Carson, Zuiverloon, Donk, Meite, Robinson, Morrison (Kim 76), Koren, Borja Valero (Pele 88), Brunt, Fortune (Bednar 75), Simpson. Subs not used: Kiely, Hoefkens, Cech, Filipe Teixeira.

Goalscorers: Simpson 53, Brunt 73 (pen).

Booked: Robinson, Meite, Morrison, Zuiverloon.

Attendance: 24,879

Referee: Peter Walton (Northamptonshire).

Hull City and West Brom had to settle for a point each after a scrappy but lively affair at the KC Stadium. Hull took a deserved lead with Bernard Mendy out-sprinting the defence after a long punt from Ian Ashbee before rounding Scott Carson and poking in. Jay Simpson grabbed the equaliser after good work from James Morrison, but Hull struck back with a Craig Fagan header. Kamil Zayatte hacked down Robert Koren in the box and Chris Brunt blasted in under Matt Duke to secure the draw.

Both managers revealed during the week that this was a match they could not afford to lose with West Brom at the foot of the Premier League and Hull with just one win in 14 league games before Saturday.  Avoiding a seventh successive league defeat was clearly uppermost in Hull boss Phil Brown's mind, packing the midfield and starting Fagan up front, with Geovanni and Manucho dropped to the bench.

Despite the Premier League's two most leaky defences on show, a goal seemed to be the last thing likely to happen in the opening exchanges, with few clear-cut chances to cheer about. The opening 20 minutes seemed to involve a competition to see who could shoot the furthest away from the target. Hull's Fagan and West Brom's Morrison the two most guilty of poor efforts. Simpson made a hash of West Brom's first chance after he blazed a volley over the bar, but Hull were looking lively and hungry and had an opportunity to take the lead on the half hour. Kevin Kilbane, making his 450th career league appearance on the eve of his 32nd birthday, crossed from the left, but the unmarked Richard Garcia's header went flying over the target. With many of the home supporters leaving their seats for a half-time hot beverage, they would have been stunned to see their side grab a fully deserved goal. As soon as the ball fell to Ashbee in the middle of the park, Mendy, starting his run on the right wing, seemed to instinctively know where the looping through-ball was heading. The Baggies defence looked shocked as the lightning-quick Mendy was soon rounding Carson and poking the ball into the net to send the majority of the stadium into a state of delirium.

Hull looked determined to add to their one goal after the break with Mendy and Fagan linking up well with Dean Marney denied by the arms of Carson. A Garcia shot and a Michael Turner header continued to keep Carson busy, but then West Brom struck. Perhaps doing very little for 52 minutes had caused the Hull defence to fall asleep, but after struggling to get the ball away they stood back and watched Morrison twisting dangerously into the area. The ball fell to Simpson who crashed the ball into the net past Duke for a hugely undeserved equaliser. The Tigers wobbled for a few minutes, but they did not have to wait long before grabbing the lead again. Mendy powered down the right and crossed in for Fagan to place his header past the diving Carson. The second half was a complete transformation with both teams being less cautious and West Brom were level within three minutes of falling behind. After Duke saved from Marc-Antoine Fortune, Zayatte hacked down Koren to give away a clear penalty and Brunt despatched comfortably. The visitors looked the most likely to grab the winner as Hull reverted to their early cautious approach, but both teams had to settle for the single point. Although Hull avoided another loss, Brown will be thinking this is two points dropped.

BBC SPORT

CURRENT CONNECTIONS

Albion goalkeeper Boaz Myhill spent almost seven years at Hull before joining Albion in July 2010 in a £1.5million deal.

Curtis Davies joined Albion from Luton Town in August 2005 and spent two successful seasons at The Hawthorns before leaving to join Aston Villa. Spells at Leicester City (loan) and Birmingham City followed before he joined Hull in June 2013.

Slovenian international midfielder Robert Koren spent three and a half years at The Hawthorns before joining the Tigers on a free transfer in August 2010.

Paul McShane joined Albion from Manchester United in August 2006 as part of the deal that took Tomasz Kuszczak to Old Trafford. He spent just one season at The Hawthorns before leaving to join Sunderland. He moved on to Hull in August 2008.

Shane Long moved to The Hawthorns from Reading in August 2011 for an initial fee of £4.5million. The Irish international went on to hit 22 goals in 87 appearances for the Baggies before leaving for Hull in January 2014 for a rumoured fee of £7million.

PAST CONNECTIONS

Amongst the players to have turned out at various levels for both clubs are: Paul Anderson, Peter Barnes, Tony Brien, Neil Clement, Delroy Facey, Alan Fettis, Chris Hargreaves, Derek Hood, John Kaye, Kevin Kilbane, Gordon Nisbet, Jay Simpson, Richard Sneekes, Gerry Summers and Jason van Blerk.

Brian Little managed both clubs; Stuart Pearson played for the Tigers and was a coach at The Hawthorns; Former Albion assistant manager Mick Brown was a Hull player; Gordon Dimbleby was Commercial Manager at The Hawthorns and General Manager at Hull.

ALL-TIME LEAGUE & CUP RECORD VS HULL CITY

 VENUE P W D  L F A
 Home 24 11 8 5 38 23
 Away 25 7 6 12 27 40
 Total 49 18 14 17 65 63

LAST TEN MATCHES AGAINST HULL CITY

DATE COMPETITION H/A F-A GOALSCORERS    GATE
Sat 21 Dec 2013 Premier League H 1-1 Vydra - Livermore    24,753
Sat 31 Jan 2009 Premier League A 2-2 Simpson, Brunt (pen) - Mendy, Fagan    24,879
Sat 25 Oct 2008 Premier League H 0-3 Zayatte, Geovanni, King    26,323
Sat 23 Feb 2008 Championship H 1-2 Bednar - Campbell, Folan    22,716
Sat 12 Jan 2008 Championship A 3-1 Phillips, Morrison, Bednar - Garcia    18,391
Sat 03 Feb 2007 Championship A 1-0 Kamara    18,005
Sat 05 Aug 2006 Championship H 2-0 Hartson 2    20,682
Sat 08 May 1993 League Division 2 H 3-1 Taylor, Hunt 2 - France    20,122
Sat 31 Oct 1992 League Division 2 A 2-1 Garner, Bradley - Jenkinson      5,443
Mon 20 Apr 1992 Third Division A 0-1 Jenkinson      4,815

 

 
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