3/1 To Win
The countdown continues!
Less than two weeks separate Gary Rowett’s men from their Sky Bet Championship opener against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Friday 4th August.
Starting today – with a clash against 2. Bundesliga side Kaiserslautern – the Rams have three pre-season games remaining ahead of that trip to face Simon Grayson’s Black Cats.
That’s not stopped us counting down to the big kick-off, though!
Since the 13th July, we have been previewing all of the clubs the Rams will face over the course of the 2017/18 season and today, we focus on one of the other sides that joined Sunderland in being relegated from the Premier League last term…
Hull City
Nickname: The Tigers
Manager: Leonid Slutsky
Stadium Capacity: 25,450
Finishing Place Last Season: 18th, Relegated from the Premier League (34 Points)
Top Scorer (2016/17): Robert Snodgrass (7 Goals)
Promotion Odds (According to Coral): 9/2
When Do We Face The Tigers?
Home – Saturday 9th September 2017
Away – Tuesday 26th December 2018
What Were The Scores Last Time (2015/16)?
Hull City 0-2 Derby County
Derby County 4-0 Hull City
How Did They Fare Last Season?
Hull City’s immediate return to the Premier League proved to be a bumpy ride from the very start.
Promoted back to the top flight through the Sky Bet Championship’s play-offs, the Tigers’ preparations for their third campaign in the top flight in four years were dealt a significant blow in July when Steve Bruce resigned.
Mike Phelan, his right-hand man, stepped up to take the reins and against all the odds, he steered a depleted and injury-ravaged City side to back-to-back Premier League victories – starting with a win over the then reigning champions Leicester City at the KC Stadium.
A two-month interim period led to him getting the head coach role on a full-time basis – not that it last long as he departed in January with the Tigers firmly in the relegation zone.
Needing a saviour, Hull turned to Marco Silva, the former Olympiacos boss, and he sparked an immediate reaction.
There was the notable 2-0 win over Liverpool and that proved to be a sign of things to come, with the Tigers’ home form giving them a genuine fighting chance of staying up.
Ultimately, though, it ended in vain.
Silva was unable to steer his side from the drop and following the end of the season, a release clause in his contract saw the Portuguese man swap Humberside for Hertfordshire as he was appointed as the new head coach of Watford.
Gearing up for life back in the Sky Bet Championship, Hull have appointed former Russia manager Leonid Slutsky as the new boss and he is tasked with rebuilding the club after several key players departed for pastures new – including Curtis Davies and Tom Huddlestone, who have joined Derby.
