Hull City v Ipswich Town preview: Focus on the Tigers

Acun Ilicali believes Hull have what it takes to return to the Premier League (Image: PA)

Going big

Historically, Hull aren’t known for splashing big cash, even by Championship standards. Yes, the club have had a couple of spells in the Premier League fairly recently, reaching the FA Cup final in 2014, but that was seen as their ceilings.

Things changed when Assem Allam sold the club in 2022. Acun Ilıcalı, known as ‘the Turkish Simon Cowell’, came in as the buyer, quickly sharing his aim to take the Tigers to the very top of the game.

Such ambition always comes as a big risk, but Ilıcalı has gone about things the right way, showing faith in manager Liam Rosenior, maintaining the core values of the club and backing them heavily in the transfer market.

We’ve seen the likes of Liam Delap, Ryan Giles, Jaden Philogene and Anass Zaroury arrive on Humberside in the last 12 months, but one signing stands out above them all.

Fabio Carvalho played against Town in pre-season (Image: Ross Halls)

A new standout

Ipswich played against Fabio Carvalho in pre-season, with him having started the campaign at RB Leipzig. He started in the 1-0 defeat against the Blues in the Innsbruck Cup, where George Hirst scored the winner.

His career to that point had been incredibly exciting, tearing apart the Championship with Fulham before earning a move to Liverpool, although minutes were hard to come by at Anfield.

The 21-year-old was sent out on loan to Germany, but struggled with 'Die Roten Bullen', which led to his move to Hull in January 2024. Since then, he’s bagged nine goals and an assist, showing just how dangerous he can be in the second tier.

If the Tigers are to make it into the top six, it’ll largely be down to him.

The Tigers are looking to return to the Premier League for the first time in nine years (Image: PA)

The dream lives on

Hull still have a decent chance of making it into the top six, but they’ll need to win their final two games and hope that West Brom or Norwich City slip up. On current form, that’s more likely to be the Baggies.

It won’t be easy. Town have suffered the fewest defeats in the league (6), and they face a trip to Home Park on the final day of the season where the Pilgrims may need a result to secure their survival.

The emotions seem to be mixed. Rosenior, who’s in the early stages of his managerial career, has received significant praise for the job he’s done, earning a Manager of the Season nomination as a result, but some argue that the squad at his disposal is more than good enough to be in the play-offs.

Other supporters see this as a bit of a free hit and an opportunity to shock one of the two teams that looked nailed on for a top-six finish. It sets up a huge clash, with a fiery atmosphere expected at the MKM Arena.

Liam Rosenior has described tonight as his side's 'cup final' (Image: PA)

What’s been said

Rosenior knows just how much this game means for both Hull, describing it as their ‘cup final’.

He also believes that the later kick-off will help his side, putting pressure on their play-off rivals to perform first while also giving his players extra time to rest before facing ‘an outstanding team’.

"I think it’s a benefit for us to be playing at 8pm for many reasons,” he said via the Yorkshire Post.

"We can sit back and see what happens around us. But it also gives us an extra few hours and every hour counts now in terms of our recovery.

"We are going to have to pick a really fit, strong and organised team to go up against an outstanding team.

"We have got to fill the ground and make it the loudest stadium in the country. It’s our cup final.

"Ipswich have had two weeks to prepare and plan for us and we have got two days to recover, rest and go again.

"We are playing against a great team, a proper team. Kieran (McKenna), another outstanding coach at this level, has done an incredible job.

"It’s heart-on-sleeve time and at the moment, every time this group of players have been asked a question in terms of performance, they are consistently putting in very good performances.

"Let’s not make it the last one (home game), let’s keep going."

Jaden Philogene has bagged 12 goals and six assists this season (Image: PA)

Who could start?

Hull’s formation is often listed as a 4-4-2, but by default, it’s a 4-2-3-1 where Carvalho plays as a free-roaming no.10, often drifting into attacking areas to wreak havoc.

For all their quality, they can be somewhat lop-sided, with the bulk of their attacking playing on the left. They struggle against teams who implement a high press and nullify midfield general Jean Michaël Seri.

Crucially, they have next to no injury issues going into the game, aside from Anass Zaroury [groin], who’s missed the last four games. He'll be assessed ahead of the clash.

With that in mind, expect a similar team to the one that beat Coventry City 3-2 in midweek, if not an unchanged lineup.

Possible XI: 4-2-3-1: Allsopp; Slater, Jones, Greaves, Jacob; Morton, Seri; Ömür, Carvalho, Philogene; Delap