Hull City are showing signs of togetherness after a battling performance earned them a draw at the weekend. Ruben Selles has been speaking about his ‘warriors’, and that camaraderie and fighting spirit will need to be maintained if City are to confirm their Championship status for a new season.

Saturday was certainly an eventful day for Joao Pedro. Not only did he score and receive a red card within 1 minute, he then popped up in Brighton to convert a 90+8 minute penalty! It must have been a clear day on the M4 that afternoon. An appeal against the sending-off was lodged, and quickly dismissed, and so JP will now be suspended until the trip to Sheffield Wednesday on April 5th.

Back to the task in hand and The Tigers have a good opportunity to build on their recent upturn in form, especially at home, with a game against out-of-sorts Oxford United. Whilst Selles’ boys still hold the unwanted honour of having the worst home record in the league (being the only team that has fewer points than games played – Played 18, Points 16), Oxford have only taken 10 points from 18 away matches. Not only that, but their total of 11 goals on the road is the 2nd worst in the league after Plymouth’s 6. This is reflected in Mark Harris being their top scorer this season with only 6 goals, and with 2nd top scorer Greg Leigh missing for the trip up North on Wednesday, you get the impression that even with a single goal the Tigers should take the full 3 points. Oxford are also on a run of 8 games without a win, their last being back in January v fellow strugglers Luton. It’s also been over 8 games since the U’s last won in Hull back in April 1989.

Despite recent poor form, Oxford come into the game having earned a credible 1-1 draw away at Norwich. Whilst the point was a welcome one, the story itself was of a team against the wall for the majority of the match. Norwich recorded 77% of the possession and managed 15 shots to Oxford’s 3. The stats also give a glimpse of how boss Gary Rowett may well set-up on Wednesday night in something of a 6-pointer. 5 at the back was the order of the day against Norwich, and the passing stats show City are likely to face a direct team, happy to relinquish possession and try and hit on the break. The Yellows made 227 total passes on Friday night, with 43 being long balls forward. This compares to Norwich’s 756 passes with 34 being long.

The good news is that with Hughes back in the side and McLoughlin playing full back, there’s plenty of height at the back to deal with any big hoofs up field. What may be an issue however, are long balls into space for pacey forwards to run on to. The pressure will surely be on our boys to play on the front foot in front of our own fans which could lead to plenty of space over the top on the counter. I think it’ll be important to take the lead and settle some nerves in the 1st half. With Plymouth conceding 28 goals in 18 on their travels, I will be backing City to get a goal or two even without Pedro, keep a clean sheet, and make a giant stride towards safety with 3 points under the MKM floodlights.

Score Prediction: Hull City 2 – 0 Oxford United

Likely line-up:
Pandur; Coyle, Jones, Hughes, McLoughlin; Puerta, Alzate; Kamara, Crooks, Gelhardt; Joseph