The surprise package of the Premier League season so far is surely Hull City. They were hardly the most entertaining team last season, winning promotion as the Championship's 14th highest scoring team out of 24. Relegated Bristol City scored only 2 goals fewer than Steve Bruce's team, who became renowned for low scoring games; 17 of their league games last season saw 1 goal or less.
Put simply, their defensive record won them a place in the Premier League, and that would provide the basis for their return to the top flight. Of course that was reason for optimism in itself come August, but a lack of goals seemed an inevitable worry. After half an hour of their opening game of the season, two goals down at Stamford Bridge and without a single attempt on goal, Hull looked bereft of creativity or anything in the way of goal threat, and people were already writing off their chances of survival. At full time the score might have remained the same, but the second half of the game gave some reason to believe that safety was achievable.
Tom Huddlestone's introduction steadied the ship, and he has brought a calmness and fluidity to Hull's midfield this season. Recent claims by Bruce that the midfielder will be deserving of a recall to the England setup if his form continues may be premature, but with the team up in 8th in the table, level on 10 points with Manchester City and Huddlestone at the origin of their most impressive football, maybe Bruce isn't too far off.
For the time being, however, Bruce will be more than happy with him maintaining this level of performance for his club. He sits at the base of the midfield breaking up play - he has made the most tackles (16) and third-most interceptions in the Hull squad (12) - before spreading the play with his best asset; his extensive range of passing.
Famed for a long, raking pass, Huddlestone is quick to switch the play, looking to his full-backs on the other side of the pitch as a basis from which to build attacks. He has played 35 accurate long balls already this season, a tally only bettered by 4 midfielders in the Premier League. However, he is not merely playing the easy pass, his success rate of 74.5% indicating that he does look to play expansive balls too. Despite his role as the deep-lying midfielder, he has attempted twice as many through balls (4) as any other Hull player and also leads their rankings for key passes (9).
One would expect that Huddlestone would be making the most passes for Hull, but his passes out to right-back Ahmed Elmohamady have meant that the Egypt international is actually more involved in their play. He has had 484 touches of the ball this season; a full 122 more than any other teammate.
The full-back, also capable of playing in midfield, has been one of his side's best attacking outlets this season. The right side of Hull's midfield or attack has been occupied this season by left-footed Stephen Quinn, centrally-inclined Robert Koren and attack-minded Sone Aluko before Elmohamady himself was moved there for the most recent game. The consequence of this is space for Elmohamady to exploit with forward forays from deep.
Such has been the case that he has completed 10 more passes in the final third of the pitch than any other Hull player this season (62) and is also one of only 4 of their players to have registered a goal. Another of those is centre-back Curtis Davies, while Robbie Brady has twice netted from the penalty spot. Predictably, goals from open play have been in short supply for Steve Bruce's side; only Southampton (1) have scored fewer goals in normal play than Hull (2), much of which has been down to the poor form of Danny Graham.
The former Swansea and Sunderland man has now gone a colossal 21 hours and 57 minutes without a Premier League goal and 10 hours and 50 minutes without an assist. He is understandably low on confidence and arguably deserves credit for continuing to work so hard for the team, but sooner or later surely Bruce will lose faith in the forward. There is hope for him this weekend though, as his Hull side face Aston Villa, the last team against whom he managed a goal and an assist. That no Premier League team has had a higher proportion of their attacking touches in wide areas this season than Hull (74%) goes to show how much they have used the likes of Elmohamady when attacking, but also highlights the inadequacies and ineffectiveness of Graham through the middle.
Those attacks have though, had success, even if Graham wasn't on the end of it. It was a cross from a wide area that led to the penalty against West Ham last week and another that set up Sone Aluko to score his spectacular winner at St. James' Park the week before. The crux of the point is that while goals have not been free-flowing for Bruce's men, his tactics have been spot on and at present, are working.
Hull are starting to show their Premier League credentials, and having been criticised before being given a proper chance, are doing much to prove their doubters wrong. Rarely do newly promoted sides manage to combine principle with pragmatism at such an early stage in life in the top flight, but whilst Steve Bruce and Hull is hardly the most glamorous of combinations, so far at least it is one that is producing football that is both eye-catching and effective.
Can Hull continue their good form and avoid relegation this season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below
