After a hard fought season the Hull City AFC Tigers have finally made it back to the English Premier League. Hull City finished the season with 79 points and 24 wins, second in both to only, Cardiff City. Hull City might not have stellar numbers like their 13th best offense in the league, and their plus-nine goal differential, but they have a good mix of youth, experience, an excellent defense, and a manager who has finally found his team.
The youthful side of the team is led by an unsung hero that is bound to turn heads, Robbie Brady. The winger turned wingback has excellent technical abilities and always looks to get forward. In fact, his four goals and second highest in the league 13 assists accounted for 28% of Hull City’s goals – the highest percentage on the team. The former Manchester United youth product is only 21 years old and is bound to get even better next year.
The player that brings experience to Hull City is the Slovenian international Robert Koren. The Tigers vice-captain was responsible for nine goals and five assists accounting for 23% of Hull City’s goals last year. Steve Bruce first touts Koren as a creative midfielder, but he is also a goal threat, scoring the most goals for the Tigers last season. The former West Bromwich Albion midfielder will without a doubt be a key player for Hull City in the Premier League.
One of the reasons Hull City did so well last year was because of their defense. Their defense was the 3rd best in the Championship only allowing 52 goals and keeping 16 clean sheets. A big part of that success was none other than James Chester. Another Manchester United youth product, the 24 year old led his team in appearances last season with 44. Although he was a regular on the team sheet, Steve Bruce rotated his defenders well. Between James Chester, Abdoulaye Faye, Alex Bruce, Paul McShane, and captain Jack Hobbs, they averaged 31 league appearances. Hull City’s defense may be a key attribute to avoid relegation next year, but their manager Steve Bruce is the vital ingredient.
Steve Bruce took over for Hull City at the beginning of last season after The Tigers finished 8th and boy did it pay off. A big reason Steve Bruce led Hull City back into the Premier League is simply because of his belief and execution of man management. “Man-management far outweighs sports science,” Bruce is quoted in an interview for the Guardian. Furthermore, Bruce even changed Hull City’s formation from a conventional 4-4-2 to an offbeat 3-5-2 in order to accommodate Robert Koren’s creativity and Abdoulaye Faye’s lack of pace. This shows he believes in his players rather than casting them aside and that has resulted in his highest win percentage as a manager. It’s easy to see that they have a bond and a sense of togetherness, just look at how they reacted when they realized they were promoted (which you can see here). It’s that togetherness, stemming from Steve Bruce, which greatly helped them gain promotion back to the Premier League.
Even though their squad has quality, Hull City needs a few more acquisitions that are Premier League quality. Their defense looks great, they might need one or two midfielders, but they definitely need a twelve-goal-a-year striker. The striker that was responsible for the most goals was Jay Simpson. However, his contract expired and this reinforces the need for a top striker. Rumour has it Steve Bruce is after Celtic’s Gary Hooper but his efforts have not been rewarded. Although, Hull City fans should not worry because they have a manager that has brought a player like Christophe Dugarry to Birmingham City. Albeit, I don’t see the manager bringing in the same kind of star power as Christope Dugarry, but with some additions, Hull City’s youth, experience, defense, team unity, and Steve Bruce, Hull City are destined to stay in the Premier League.