Opposition View: Hull City
Ahead of our relegation crunch game at the KC Stadium, I spoke to Andy Dalton from Hull fansite Amber Nectar. Here are his thoughts going into the game…
Name – Andy Dalton
Age – 35
Q: How long have you supported Hull?
It’s a whole of life sentence.
Q: After an unexpectedly excellent start to the season, are you at all surprised to find yourself in such a poor position in the league approaching April?
Nope. A summer of sabotage by our detestable owners means it’s a miracle we’re still vaguely in contention for survival. If anything, we’re probably one place better than we anticipated.
Q: As a Hull fan, who has been your standout player this season?
Harry Maguire. An unholy combination of Franz Beckenbaur and Mick Foley, he’s quite unlike any player I’ve ever seen, for anyone, ever.
Q: Is there anybody in particular you think we should be wary of on Saturday? Is there anyone showing particularly good form that may have gone unseen?
Kamil Grosicki, a January signing from Rennes, has impressed since his arrival. He shows attacking promise and a laudable workrate on the wing, and seems charmingly thrilled to be here in England.
Q: Likewise, is there anybody who you think Marco Silva will pinpoint as a threat for Swansea?
As a regular La Liga viewer, I’ve always been a huge fan of Llorente. That’s probably not the most imaginative response you’ll have received to this query throughout 2016/17, but in other circumstances I’d have quite relished seeing him play.
Q: Similarly to us, you’ve had a bit of a shakeup with managers this season. What do you think Marco Silva changed when he came in? And do you think he can keep you up?
He’s done well so far, though a horror show at Leicester last week and a tepid draw with Burnley the week before have slightly jolted his halo. At first he’d got us playing with purpose and confidence when both qualities had been largely absent from City’s play throughout the season. He has an immensely difficult task ahead though; I’d be surprised if we aren’t buying our Burton away tickets next season.
Q: Given your struggles in front of goal this season, how disappointed were you to see Robert Snodgrass leave in January?
Disappointed indeed. It’s never been clearly established whether the player wanted out and forced a move, whether Silva was prepared to collect the money to invest elsewhere or whether the owners just fancied cashing in. All of those seem perfectly possible. He was a rare goal threat though, and we keenly miss his set pieces.
Q: What are the key weaknesses in your side you think we could exploit?
We aren’t awfully good at attacking or defending. We can play some nice stuff though. Just keep us quiet for twenty minutes and wait for the nerves to set in.
Q: How do you think you’ll line up this weekend? Can we expect any changes?
Marco Silva has shown a tendency for unexpected team selections – needless to say, that’s tantamount to genius when we win, and crassly foolish when we lose. I honestly couldn’t be sure of what side we’ll pick, though it’ll probably be deployed in a 4-3-3 formation.
Q: What’s your score prediction for the game?
We’re down if we lose, and probably down if we draw. I think we’ll keep the season alive for just a bit longer, if only because a quick, merciful release isn’t really the City way when there’s a slow, painful lingering death to be served up instead. 1-0 City.
Q: And finally, what three teams do you think will face the drop this season?
The current bottom three has a feeling of permanence to it. Middlesbrough may just manage a swap with Palace or yourselves…but probably not. Sad times ahead for the north of England.
Big thanks to Andy for talking to us! You can read more from him and Hull City at AmberNectar.org!