The Tigers had themselves to blame for a missed opportunity
Hull City’s six-game unbeaten run came to an end at Derby County on Tuesday night, with the Tigers This result doesn’t change that. It’s the Championship; setbacks happen.
Despite finding themselves a goal down to Carlton Morris’ header at half-time, going down to a 2-1 defeat in the East Midlands fought back and were level early in the second half when Joel Ndala bundled in.
City threatened to go on and win the game in a dominant period of the second half, but conceded a horror goal when Semi Ajayi and Ivor Pandur made a mess of a situation to allow the winner to be clubbed in.
A lesson learned
City’s unbeaten run was going to come to an end at some point, but the manner of it will frustrate Jakirovic and the players massively. Make no mistake about it, they were under-par again in the first half, but there was a major improvement in the second half, and they had Derby on the ropes for much of it.
The goal was gifted. They didn’t have to work for it, and all their work in getting back in the game and then gaining the upper hand was undone.
They must learn quickly. It’s been a fantastic run, and they’ve claimed some big scalps along the way with such injury troubles. The frustration will be the ease with which the win was given away, when they looked to have a point in their pocket to keep their excellent run going.
It’s another example that if you switch off, if you’re complacent and don’t do your job, you’ll get punished, and that was the case on Tuesday evening.
Errors costing points
City were fortunate to get away with not conceding in the first half at Norwich, and perhaps their luck ran out at Pride Park. Pandur looked unsettled all night and was fortunate when he looked to have handled the ball outside his box earlier in the second period.
His miscommunication with Ajayi was completely avoidable. Having appeared to have shouted to Ajayi to leave it, Pandur should have blasted the ball away from danger at the very least.
Slipping was unfortunate, and that can’t be helped, but that indecisiveness has been apparent quite often, and it caught up with the Tigers when it mattered.
That’s twice in three games City have conceded poor goals. It happened in the 91st minute against Charlton Athletic, and they dropped two points, and then again here. Simply eradicating those basic errors would make a seismic difference.
Can they do it for two halves?
It seems harsh to say, given City have started the season brilliantly, and this result doesn’t suddenly thwart dreams of making the top six, but if that’s going to be a genuine possibility, there has to be more consistency in a whole game.
At Norwich, they were terrible in the first half and much better in the second. On Tuesday, they were OK in patches during the first period but again, too passive at times, and didn’t create anything aside from Matt Crooks’ stinging effort.
If they could just string a full performance together and play well in both halves, then they wouldn’t give themselves quite so much work to do.
It should not be forgotten, however, that City had won four of their last six before this one, and they’re still in a fantastic position. This result doesn’t change that. It’s the Championship; setbacks happen.
Injuries really biting
Even without all the players they’re missing, City should have come away from Pride Park with a positive result. The players available to Jakirovic have been churning out results for a while now, and this is a setback.
Morris made a massive difference for them in attack, especially in that first half when his powerful header got them in front. Even in the second half, when City were dominant, they were able to lump it forward, and he took control and got them up the pitch.
City just don’t have that without Oli McBurnie. Hindsight is, of course, wonderful, but with McBurnie, John Lundstram, Liam Millar and Mo Belloumi, you fancy they don’t leave empty-handed.
Now do it again
Funilly enough, given their issues, fans would probably have taken a point at Norwich and then another at Pride Park with Portsmouth to come on Saturday. Well, those three points in Norfolk set them up really well.
The task now for City is to get back on the horse, so to speak, and make sure they go into the break with a positive result and add to those points claimed at Carrow Road.
Defeats are always going to happen in the Championship, and City were going to lose at some point, so now, it’s about how you bounce back and they’ll need to do that this weekend to ensure they don’t waste their good work at the weekend.
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