Middlesbrough 1-0 Hull: Three things we learnt

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Hull’s negativity comes back to haunt them

Despite their impressive run in the League Cup, which has seen them earn a spot in the semi-finals, Hull looked like a team destined to be relegated on Monday evening. Eight defeats out of their last ten Premier League fixtures signifies their current trajectory but even more telling was the timid, insipid and negative performance that they produced at the Riverside Stadium.

Even from the early stages of the contest it was clear that The Tigers had travelled to the North East with little more than a desire to hold on to a point. Mike Phelan’s side were camped inside their own half for large portions of the game and showed very little intentions of breaking forward until they fell behind mid-way through the second half. Even then, with the hosts starting to sit back in the closing stages, the most that Hull could muster was a tame Matthew Dawson header and some threatening movements from Diomande.

If Hull are to avoid relegation this season then they need to put themselves on the front foot in matches and be willing to go on the offensive. They are simply not good enough defensively to sit back and soak up the pressure. I am sure that supporters would rather see their side going into a game looking to win, rather than looking not to lose as they did on Monday.