The last time these two teams met in the League Cup was 45 years ago, to the very day.
Sheffield Wednesday ran out winners 2-1 at Boothferry Park. Not a particularly good omen
to start with. The EFL Cup (or League Cup or any other variant of it name) has never been a
strong suit of the Tigers, in recent season Round 1 exits have come to League 2 opponents,
in Bradford and more recently Doncaster. I like to keep my articles upbeat but so far, I am a
little short of positives.
After one game the visitors currently sit top of the table following an impressive performance and result vs Plymouth, whilst City just about managed a point against Bristol City thanks to a last-minute penalty. Danny Röhl has been impressive in his first senior managerial role, the turn around from the 4-2 City win at the start of last season to the 3-1 Wednesday win on New Year's Day was vast.

What can I be positive about then? Prior to the 3-1 defeat, City had only lost to the Owls
once in the last ten games. Furthermore, the last time the Tigers lost twice in a row to
Sheffield Wednesday was the 1990/91 season. If we could drag Nick Barmby (5 goals in 7
games vs tonight’s opponents) back out of the retirement, then Tim Walter’s side would
definitely have the hoodoo over the South Yorkshire side.

In a game such as this rotation is expected from both teams – debuts for players needing
fitness before starting in the league, opportunities for young players following impressive
pre-season performances and resting key players early in the season. It is a tough game to
call for all these reasons and if it goes to penalties, I may need a lie down ahead of a long
trip to the Southwest on Saturday.

Score prediction: 1-1 (Hull City 4-3 penalties)