Buoyed by their stunning win over Manchester United, Hull City face their first Premier League away game against Coventry City on Saturday.
City delivered a terrific performance against United to secure a priceless 2-0 win at the MKM Stadium, and they kept their good form going with penalty success at Stoke City in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night, with 11 changes made by Sergej Jakirovic.
The City boss rested a host of players who impressed against United, with Oli McBurnie, Matt Crooks and Semi Ajayi given the night off, while Konstantinos Tzolakis, Nobel Mendy, Lewie Coyle, Mo Belloumi, Regan Slater and Ryan Giles started on the bench. Slater and Belloumi were introduced in the second half, with the Algerian slotting in the winning kick.
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Despite injury concerns after Saturday, Coyle, Ajayi, Mendy and Giles are all available to play in Coventry, with Jakirovic forced to decide whether or not to stick with the same side that performed so impressively. The one change could be at left-back with ongoing talk about Giles and a move to Burnley. Should Giles not be involved, then Matt Targett would likely come into the side as a like-for-like replacement.
Facing Frank Lampard’s side in front of a packed CBS Arena crowd will be a significant test for the Tigers, with Sky Blues fans likely to ramp up the atmosphere after more than 20 years outside the top-flight, and in a similar way to what greeted United last weekend, Jakirovic’s men must be ready for an early onslaught.
Of the many positives coming out of that midweek trip to the Potteries, the debut of Hidemasa Morita in the second half was one of them. Though he won’t be fit to start, having a player of that calibre available will be a huge boost. Lucas Herrington and Lucas Gourna-Douath also caught the eye, giving Jakirovic added food for thought.
Not only will City’s squad this weekend be boosted by Morita’s inclusion, but it’s expected that Mohamed-Ali Cho will also be included, though it’s unlikely Ilyas Ansah’s switch from Union Berlin will be completed in time, so he’ll make his debut next weekend against Aston Villa.
One fascinating sub-plot last weekend was Jakirovic’s decision to operate with a back three, something he did on occasions last season to great success. Will he repeat that in Coventry, or revert to the 4-3-3 we saw in Stoke on Tuesday?
City’s predicted XI: Tzolakis, Giles, Ajayi, Mendy, Egan, Coyle, Slater, Crooks, Stroud, Belloumi, McBurnie.
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