City have enjoyed a terrific start to the new campaign under Sergej Jakirovic
Hull City moved fifth in the Championship on Saturday with a 3-2 win over Portsmouth, which brought an end to the final spell of games before the international break.
Under Sergej Jakirovic, the Tigers have snaffled up 25 points from their opening 15 games and are safely nestled inside the Championship’s top six, surprising many with their encouraging opening.
Despite City‘s impressive start to the season, few outside of East Yorkshire give the Tigers hope of maintaining their form as the season wears on, despite the growing confidence amongst Tigers fans who are daring to dream that this could be their year.
According to the latest supercomputer predictions, City will miss out on the top six and finish 11th with 66 points, nine off a play-off place.
The same prediction, though, has Oxford United finishing above City in ninth place on 67 points. The U’s currently occupy 21st with 13 points, so based on that suggestion, they’ll need another 54 points from their 31 games at an average of more than 1.7 points per game. If you averaged that out over the season, they’d hit 78 points. Even the most positive Oxford fan would deem that a tad unlikely based on their trajectory thus far, but I guess you never know!
Sheffield Wednesday, who have won once in 15 games and are on minus-four, are even backed to reach 44 points and be relegated on goal difference, meaning they would claim another 48 points in the remaining 31 games. That feels unlikely, in truth.
Coventry City and Stoke City, meanwhile, are backed to go up as champions and runners-up respectively, with Ipswich Town, Bristol City, Watford and Leicester City making up the top six, with Charlton Athletic narrowly missing out.
Ipswich and Bristol City are predicted to ease past the Foxes and Hornets, respectively, with the Robins overcoming the Tractor Boys on penalties in the Wembley final to seal a first-ever promotion to the Premier League.
Of course, we’re in November. Only 15 games have been played, and anything can still happen, and even the most bizarre predictions can sometimes come true. After all, as Sergej Jakirovic often says, ‘this is football’, so anything is possible.
Here’s a look at what Compare.bet thinks will happen over the remaining 31 games…