Hull City

Recent Twittering by American International Striker Freddy Adu has brought the prospect of him joining the Tigers in the English Premier League to the forefront of the transfer rumor mill.

Adu, the Ghana-born 20-year-old has been on loan at A.S. Monaco in France, and C.F. Os Belenenses in the Portuguese second division from S.L. Benfica who are sitting second in the Portuguese Liga Sagres. He has reportedly been linked with a move to either Hull City in the EPL, or Greek side, Aris Thessaloniki FC.

The young American made history by becoming the youngest player in Major League Soccer when he made his professional debut for D.C. United in the MLS clash against San Jose Earthquake, when he came on as a second half substitute, at the tender age of 14. He broke the MLS record two weeks later by becoming the youngest scorer in the MLS by scoring in the 3-2 loss to the New York Metrostars.

Adu became the focal point for much speculation about his future when as a 10-year-old in 2000, he played in an under-14's tournament in Italy, for the U.S. Olympic Development Program, against such teams as Lazio and Juventus.

Due to the success of the U.S. team and Adu in particular, F.C. Internazionale Milano tried to sign him to their academy for a six figure sum. Adu's mother rejected the offer on advice of his agent.

Adu was drafted to the MLS franchise D.C. United to keep him close to his family because of his young age, in a deal that was agreed in conjunction with the MLS commissioner, and the MLS franchise Dallas Burn who had the overall number one draft pick for that season.

Further speculation grew about a move to Europe in 2006 as it became know that Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United was a fan of his. Ferguson denied the claims, but Manchester United invited him over for a two week trial to play with the Manchester United academy players.

In 2006 he was traded to Real Salt Lake but had less than a full season with Real, scoring two goals in 11 appearances.

On July 30 2007, he signed for the famous Portugese club Benfica. S.L. Benfica paid $2 million to the MLS for the transfer, but his time with the Eagles has been less than auspicious. Adu only made 11 appearances for Benfica, scoring five goals before a season long loan spell for the 2008/9 season at A.S. Monaco in France, were he made only 10 appearances with no goals.

Benfica then loaned him out to Portugese Second Division side C.F. Os Belenenses for the 2009/10 season in Lisbon were he was injured just before half time in his debut for the club. Unfortunately for Adu, with a change in management at the club at the end of December 2009 it was decided to return him to Benfica.

From a promising start the young American's career has stalled but he will be hoping that if he can get a work permit a move to the English Premiership would help in his attempts to become a regular in the U.S. National side for the World Cup in South Africa in the summer.

However, gaining a work permit for a loan spell in England is never easy for non-European players. To gain a work permit a player must have played at least seven percent of international games in the previous two season. Something that Adu clearly hasn't done, but it is a very slim chance that he could be granted a permit in the young players' category, in which a player can plead his case at a tribunal, but with his lack of first team football his chances are slim indeed.

F.A. Cup Preview: Wigan Athletic Vs Hull City, DW Stadium, Wigan, England, Saturday January 2nd 2010, 15:00GMT.

Phil Brown's Tigers travel to the DW Stadium, Wigan for the F.A. Cup third round tie with all the pressure on Roberto Martinez' Wigan team.

The Tigers are in the middle of a very tough schedule in the Premier League with matches over the Christmas and New Year Period against some of the best teams in the division taking their toll on the East Yorkshire team's results.

With fixtures coming up against league leaders Chelsea next week at the KC Stadium followed by ties against high flying Tottenham Hotspurs and Manchester United, Brown may have one eye on the league for this game.

Martinez, who has seen his Wigan side slowly sliding down the Premiership table will be hoping to gain some much needed confidence for his players with a victory against the Tigers.

The last time these two sides met in October the Tigers roundly beat the Latics two one, but things are different for the two clubs as they both see themselves at the wrong end of the table with only one point separating them.

The Latics, who were roundly thumped, five nil by Manchester United mid-week will be hoping that Chris Kirkland will have recovered from the illness that allowed him to only last 45minutes against the Red Devils. If not the England keeper Kirkland will probably be replaced by Mike Pollitt who replaced him against Manchester United.

Martinez will probably make us of his squad players as will Brown for Hull City. It has been hinted that Jason Koumas, James McCarthy, Cho Won-Hee and Antonio Amaya may make first XI starts for the Latics rather than been on the substitutes bench at the DW Stadium.

Brown is rumoured to be giving a run out for some of the clubs fringe players, with Tom Cairney and Liam Cooper from the youth team expected to make an appearance.

Other players that have been making cameo appearances from the bench for the Tigers are expected to get a run out with Kevin Kilbane, Peter Halmosi, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and Caleb Folan all possibly in the starting eleven.

For the Tigers this could be a shop window for the club as they look to clear out some of the squad to ease a huge wage bill and for Martinez getting back to winning ways could be just what the Spaniard needs.

With the New Year approaching and the second half of the season on the door step waiting to come in with Old Father Time, there is a lot for fans of football's most famous East Yorkshire club to look forward to.

Sitting in 19th place in the Premiership—with the worst defence in the league—having conceded a massive 42 goals in only 20 games doesn't sound like grounds for optimism, but with just over half the season over, things are on the up for the Tigers.

Recent fixtures against a resurgent Arsenal showed promise, and a battling commitment by the players—and the same could be said for the loss to Manchester United—of Phil Brown's men showed that they can keep pace with the best in the league. Given a small pinch of luck and better refereeing they could well have gotten something out of the games in particular, but for the class of the Champion's England striker, the Tiger's could have gained three valuable points against Manchester United.

It is often mentioned that the Tiger's manager is the weakest link in the Hull City chain and that the players don't play for him, but that is far from the truth. If anything the commitment the players have shown their manager over the past few weeks has thrown this ridiculous idea out of the window.

Indeed, Brown has started to get his team to be more attacking of late, even against so-called better opposition with his charges following his tactical plans very well. He has reverted to a conventional 4-4-2 formation rather than the 4-5-1 formation that he used at points during the latter part of last season and occasionally this season.

The 4-5-1 formation works very well for some team, but in Hull City's case it doesn't fit the balance of the side. It has become more noticable over recent weeks that for all Geovanni's obvious footballing talents, he doesn't quite fit. He is a square peg in a round hole, and the team's balance is better with a conventional midfield of two wide players a holding midfielder and a midfield general.

Geovanni's ability to produce something from nothing is not in question, but his ability to fit in a team that is in a relegation dog fight is. He is prone to run with the ball and move all over the field as he sees is necessary, but he needs to be more focused in his play. He has become a better all round player since joining the Tigers, as he now tracks back, tackles and works for his team, but the maverick Brazilian temperament still comes through as he is on the left one moment then the right the next.

Since Jimmy Bullard's recent injury, Brown has tried a couple of options not least Geovanni in that role as the midfield general. However, with the reintroduction of George Boateng back into the lead midfield role, there has become more balance to the side. This also will allow the team to be better equipped to reintigrate Bullard on his return to full fitness at the tail end of January.

For the Tigers to have a better chance of survival, it might be prudent for Brown to play Bullard in games that he feels the club have a clear chance of victory. He should maybe take a leaf out of Mick McCarthy's book and wrap Bullard in cotton wool for matches against the likes of Chelsea, Villa, Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, and Spurs to protect him for the games when when we have a more realistic chance of success.

Brown has formed his team around players with spirit more than aptitude in a lot of ways. Fagan and Garcia are both good players but would never be classed as greats of the game, but what they lack in ability they make up for it in their pugnacious attitude. They are the sort of players who would crawl over broken glass for the team if it meant winning three points. When some players heads drop, they will battle harder.

Another player that will be key is Stephen Hunt, the wonderful little Irish international. He is tenacious and bellicose but not without a dash of skill. He has the habit of getting on the end of balls that he has no right to. Against Bolton at the Reebok Stadium, he latched onto a header to bring the team back into the game from between two of Bolton's huge centre backs.

Jozy Altidore the raw young American striker is improving every week as he gains more Premier League exprience. His partnership with Fagan is gaining momentum as they learn to read each other's routes and runs. Altidore, has gone from neophite to battling bruiser tirelessly running for his teammates. He works over the opposition defenders for Brown, so his manager can then bring on the old war horse, Jan Vanegoor of Hesselink, when the opposition is at its weakest.

The biggest worry for the Tigers is the defence, but more because of familiarity. Brown has had to change the defence around a fair amount. He started with Michael Turner in the centre back position alongside Kamil Zayette, he then lost Turner to Sunderland.

The influential and superb Anthony Gardner returned to full fitness, but the defence then lost Paul McShane—who had replaced Sam Ricketts, who was sold. As the team was finally starting to communicate well with each other, McShane sustained an injury and Benard Mendy was recalled.

The resurgence of Mendy as an offensive right back has been great to see, but his communication with his centre back partner Zayette is still a work in progress, but this will improve as they get more matches under their belt.

However, with the Seyi Olofinjana leaving to take part in the African Cup of Nations, the holding role he has made his own in the absence of club captain Ian Ashbee will be a big hole to fill. Dean Marney who will be his stand-in can run tirelessly but does not have Olofinjana's footballing ability, and he will be sorely missed whilst on international duty.

All in all the Tigers second half of the season has all the potential of been very fruitful. Brown will have the return of Bullard, who was so influential in November. He has a team that is fully commited for him on the field. Brown has a striking partnership that is blending into a good formidable duo and, with more games under their belt, will start to bear the fruit of their endeavours.

Brown has hit on his team's best formation with players that can come in in most positions to fill others shoes if needed, and he has got a team that doesn't hang its head even if they are losing.

With games coming up against Chelsea, Tottenham, and Manchester United in the next few weeks, some of the club's hardest challenges will be over. The meat and drink of teams that the Tigers will be battling with for survival will be theirs for the taking.

The New Year, bring it on. The future's bright, the future's amber.

Premier League Preview: Bolton Wanderers Vs Hull City, Reebok Stadium, Bolton, England, Tuesday 29th 2009, 20:00GMT.

The Tigers travel to the Reebok on the tail end of a torrid festive season. From sitting in 16th place, three points above the relegation zone, they have suffered two defeats in as many games, which has left them languishing in 19th place, just below Bolton Wanderers, on the same points.

However, Phil Brown, the Hull City boss, will have taken heart from the games. Gaining any points to Arsenal at the Emirates and Manchester United at the KC Stadium would have been long shots for the East Yorkshire Club. The manner in which the Tiger's lost the games though would hardly have suggested the huge disparity in league position's between the top four clubs and Hull City.

In both games, Brown's Tigers played some good football, but against such good sides it is vitally important that you convert your chances, and the Tigers just didn't do that and ultimately they paid the price.

Gary Megson has also had his problems recently, with Bolton fans unhappy with his sides style of play, but his side's three match unbeaten run will have given him a feeling of optimism for the New Year.

Although, with the Trotters still in the drop zone, a win against Hull City would possibly take his side out of the relegation zone for the first time since the beginning of December.

Earlier this season the Tigers fought out a battling one-nil victory at the KC Stadium, with Bolton having the lion share of the encounter but unable to put the Tigers to the sword, they paid dearly for this.

With 30 minutes left on the clock, Brown changed the Tiger's formation from a defensive 4-5-1 formation to a traditional 4-4-2 formation, bringing on the young American, Jozy Altidore for Caleb Folan, who had worked tirelessly on his own up front.

The New Jersey native breathed a new lease of life in to the Tigers and gave them the much needed strength up front. His hold-up play was superb and with the extra space he created for the midfield to move forward, it allowed the Tigers to go on the offensive.

Altidore's first touch was a deft chest down and a swinging right foot chip over the Bolton back line. A swift footed Ghilas latched on to it, and with a couple of touches smashed it past the huge Finnish goalkeeper, Jussi Jääskeläinen.

For much of the game, Geovanni, the mercurial Brazilian, had spent his time chasing the Bolton midfielder's shadows but with the extra space he was like a player reborn. He made some telling passes and runs. Not least a beautifully threaded pass for Altidore who squandered the chance as he was dragged wide by the Bolton defense.

In another wonderful opportunity for the Tigers and Altidore, the American shot just wide of the Bolton post, leaving him holding his head in his hands in despair. Ghilas, not to be left out, had a beautiful shot ricochet off the crossbar that left him holding his head in his hands as well.

The Tigers ended the game in the ascendancy and Gary Megson's Bolton team were left ruing their missed chances. Just like last season, where the Tigers felt that it was only the fantastic play of Jääskeläinen, so did Bolton in November were it was the superb play of Hull City's other American, the Californian born Boaz Myhill, that stopped them from gaining three valuable Premiership points.

Both teams have been having issues with missing players over the congested Christmas period but Megson will be pleased that Fabrice Muamba will be back from suspension, but it looks like Gavin McCann is likely to miss out again as he is still not recovered from his ankle injury.

The Tigers and Brown are still without the services of the influential midfielder Jimmy Bullard, who is out with a sprained medial ligament in his knee, along with club skipper Ian Ashbee, also suffering from a knee injury. Nick Barmby, who sustained a calf injury in the recent three-nil loss to Arsenal last week, is still out.

The importance of this fixture won't be lost on these two dogged managers, both Megson and Brown will appreciate just how important this game is for their respective clubs. The Tigers have the Bolton game sandwiched between games against some of the countries top clubs in Chelsea, Tottenham then the return fixture with Manchester United still to come.

Bolton play Sunderland, Arsenal, and then the important game against Burnley. For both clubs, three points from this game could be vital by the end of the season. For Bolton, it is imperative that they keep their current run of form going but for the Tigers, who have lost two on the bounce despite valiant efforts, they need to get back to winning ways.

Hull City Vs Blackburn Rovers, Kingston Communications Stadium,Hull, England, 12th December 2009, 15:00GMT

On Saturday, Sam Alladyce and his Blackburn Rovers team take the trip down the M62 to KC Stadium to face Hull City and his old friend Phil Brown. The last time the two faced off was in early March this year as the 2008/09 season was drawing to a close. The game finished with the Riversiders winning 2-1, with Stephen Warnock and Tiger's old boy Keith Andrews on target for Blackburn and the Tiger's captain Ian Ashbee getting a consolation goal.

The clubs see themselves sitting within three places of each other and only two points apart, with Blackburn in 12th on 18 points, and Hull City in 16th on 16 points.

The Tigers who have been going through a bit of a purple patch in November, gaining eight points from a possible 12, were brought down to earth last weekend when Aston Villa put three past them at Villa Park. If the loss wasn't enough, record signing and recent Barclays Premiership Player of the Month winner for November, Jimmy Bullard, suffered a sprained medial ligament injury that will probably keep him out until the end of January 2010.

The Tigers will also be without the services of last season's scorer Ashbee, who is a long term casualty. Hull City manager Brown will be giving late fitness tests for Andy Dawson and Anthony Gardner who both picked up niggling injuries.

However, Brown will be happy to see the return of Seyi Olofinjana, who has been absent for the past month after sustaining an injury whilst on international duty with Nigeria. He will also have the tricky task of whether to bring back Boaz Myhill into the Hull City goal. The Welsh international has returned from injury, but will find it difficult to dislodge the incumbent keeper, Matt Duke, who has been in fine form through November.

The Riversiders are without David Dunn, who suffered a calf injury in the goalless draw with Stoke City two weeks ago. Alladyce will be hoping that he can get the influential play-maker back to full fitness, despite the success of a Carling Cup Quarter Final victory on penalties against Premier League leaders Chelsea last week and the nil, nil draw against Liverpool last weekend.

Alladyce will be happy with recent performances but will be worried that his team is struggling to score in the League. Likewise, Brown will be hoping to recapture the recent form that has taken the Tigers away from the relegation zone but will be hoping that the loss to Aston Villa doesn't become a trend.

When Jimmy Bullard limped off the field at Villa Park against Aston Villa with the help of teammate Kamel Ghilas and fitness coach Sean Rush, it was another blow for Hull City. The Tigers were finally reaping the benefits of his wonderful talents after waiting so long.

However, it was even more of a blow to Bullard himself, who had just spent nine months trying to get back to full fitness. For Bullard, who had been on the fringe of a full England cap after being part of the squad in August 2008, it must have been a bitter disappointment.

Bullard started his career with Gravesend & Northfleet Football Club (now Ebbsfleet United FC) in the Football Conference before signing for his boyhood heroes West Ham United. He never made an appearance for his beloved Hammers, but was sold to Peterborough United on a free transfer.

At Peterborough, Bullard scored a creditable 11 goals in 62 appearances from midfield before his star rose and Barry Fry sold him to Wigan for £275,000 in 2003.

At Wigan, Bullard's game improved as he carried on learning his trade, becoming a very good footballer with Wigan, winning many plaudits along with the Football League Division Two Player of the Season Award for 2002-03, and also helping Wigan to the Premiership in 2004-05. He was on Wigan's losing side that was beaten by Manchester United in the Carling Cup final in 2006.

It was in April of 2006 that Bullard, who had been the lynchpin of Wigan's most successful team up to that point in their history, activated a clause in his contract that allowed him to talk to clubs in the London area that expressed an interest in him. He signed for Fulham for £2,500,000 at the end of the season.

Bullard's infectious, cheeky East End character was also starting to get him noticed for reasons other than football. In a couple of incidents, his ebullient character shone through. His effervescent personality would win him plaudits from the fan favourite TV show "Soccer AM".

In one incident, Bullard ran the length of the pitch in a cheeky attempt to score, after there was a floodlight failure during Wigan's League Cup semi-final home leg against Arsenal.

In another, he attempted to leapfrog a pile of players in a goalmouth scramble against Everton in a Premier League clash that ended with him falling flat on his face.

Bullard's antics didn't end there. In the same game against Everton, he squared up to noted Scottish hardman Duncan Ferguson, who had just been sent off for punching Wigan's Paul Scharner.

Bullard faced off (maybe that should be faced up as Ferguson was more than half a foot taller than Bullard) with Ferguson with his inimitable cheeky grin on his face.

Unfortuntately for Bullard, his time at Fulham would not be as joyous as at Wigan.

His debut was in a 5-1 thumping by Manchester United, but this was followed by his first goal for the club, as his last minute penalty would secure a draw for the Cottagers. Two weeks later, Bullard injured his right knee in a game against Newcastle United that would make him miss more than two years of football.

The initial diagnosis for his knee injury was that of a dislocated patella, but it was later discovered that he had an anterior cruciate ligament injury, which would mean his knee would have to be rebuilt.

He travelled to the United States to see renowned knee surgeon Dr. Richard Steadman.  It was originally expected that he would only be out for nine months, but that soon stretched to 13 months. It would be 16 months before he would pull on a first team shirt for Fulham.

It is no coincidence that Fulham's precarious position around the relegation zone in 2007-08 was rectified by Roy Hodgson's ability to play Bullard in the second half of the season, and it was fitting that it would be Bullard's cross to Danny Murphy to score against Portsmouth that would keep Fulham a Premier League club for another season.

The next season, Fulham was performing very well, but because Bullard's contract was nearing completion with only 16 months left, he entered negotiations with Hodgson and the Fulham management team.

Bullard felt that Fulham weren't offering him the contract he deserved after the successful second half of the season in which he had helped Fulham survive.

Bullard said of the impasse with Fulham:

"I had sixteen months left on my contract, which to me—I've been out sixteen months, I know it isn't a long time—and I wasn't willing to play with sixteen months... with one year left on my contract, and I did tell them that, I made that clear, even though I am under contract.

"Also I didn't feel I had the backing from the club, so I felt like it was time to move on. I felt like Fulham didn't want me and it was as simple as that really. I was in talks with Fulham over a contract and I was told I'm not getting a new contract and I can leave in January.

"So for a player to be told that was quite harsh, you know, and I came up to speak to Hull and it was totally different, and it sort of made it a lot easier for me. I'm only human, I just wanted to play for a team who really wanted me, and Hull showed me that really"

In the almost three years with Fulham, he had only managed 39 games for them, scoring six goals.

At the time, Hull City was sitting in sixth place in the Premiership, and Hull City boss Phil Brown was looking for the spark that would reignite the Tigers' season, which was starting to fade. The signing of Bullard for £5,000,000 by the Tigers was a club record, and a huge risk for an injury prone 31-year-old player.

Unfortunately, Bullard was injured after only 37 minutes in his Hull City debut, and even though he had started well, his Hull City tenure came crashing to his feet as he had a reoccurance of his right knee injury. The initial feeling was that it could be less severe than his last serious knee injury, but after consultation with Dr. Steadman, it was learned that he would need more surgery on his knee and be out for an extended period yet again.

Bullard returned to the Hull City ranks in the reserves with an outing against the Bolton Wanderers the next season, scoring a thunderous long-range effort a few days before making his long awaited return for the Tigers. Ironically, his return was at his old stomping ground of Craven Cottage, Fulham, where he came on as a substitute in a drab affair where the Tigers had been clearly outplayed.

Finally, after almost 11 months, Bullard made his home debut for the Tigers at the Kingston Communications Stadium, Hull. His inspirational form was the catalyst in the 2-1 victory over Stoke City, with him having a hand in both of the Tigers' goals. He would go from strength to strength, scoring his first goal for Hull City in the 3-3 clash with West Ham United. 

He was rested for the next clash against Everton, but the confidence the team had gained after two fantastic performances was carried over into the Everton game as the Tigers won yet again. The club's resurgence, and Bullard's, seemed complete as the Tigers earned a well deserved draw against Mark Hughes' team of multi-millionaires, with Bullard scoring from the penalty kick to tie the game.

The game again highlighted Bullard's wonderful character. In a return to the scene of one of one of the media's much hyped Phil Brown gaffes, Bullard, with the help of his teammates Stephen Hunt and Paul McShane, set out to satire the on-field half-time team talk that was a media lead monkey on the back of Phil Brown. His hijinks were a cathartic exercise for the club that had struggled greatly since the last time they played at Eastlands.

Brian Horton, the Hull City assistant manager, told Sky Sports,

"You never want to praise one player because it's a team game but he's an infectious lad. He's crackers at times, but he's so lively around the place and I really do think he's taken us to the next level on the training pitch."

Bullard's fine performances, and his hand in Hull City's climb out of the relegation zone, won him the Barclays Premiership Player of the Month Award for November 2009.

Unfortunately, the next game was to be a return to old ways in more ways than one. The famous old Yorkshire club was poor in many areas against Aston Villa, conceding a goal after only 13 minutes.

Bullard's day went from bad to worse as he went up for a high ball with Villa's James Milner and landed heavily on his left knee. After much treatment from the Hull City physiotherapist Simon Maltby, he attempted to run the injury off but needed to be helped off the field with tears in his eyes.

Bullard is alleged to have said, "It's fecked", as he passed the Hull City bench.

This recent injury is very unlucky, but luckily it is not his right knee, which has had two extensive repairs in the past, but a new injury to his left knee. Phil Brown on the Hull City's official website said,

"Jimmy automatically saw the downside because of the effect the last 12 months have had on him. The fact that he came off thinking he was going to need an operation straightaway is testimony to that."

The club, with the team's doctors, has discovered that his new injury is a medial ligament sprain. Brown continued:

"Six weeks is the best case scenario, eight weeks is probably the worst case scenario. We're looking for Jimmy to be back on the field of play by the back end of January."

It is a sad day for football in general when a player of Bullard's undoubted talent has the first response that his career is over after another injury. Fans of any club would be hard-hearted not to feel for Bullard in the wake of his recent injury.

For a player to have come through from non-league football to the verge of international football at the highest level, only to have it snatched away so cruelly, is a great shame. After his rise to prominence with Wigan, Bullard has only played 45 games in almost four years.

As a fan of football and Hull City in particular, I hope that this wonderfully gifted, charismatic, and genuinely funny footballer can return to full fitness sooner rather than later.

Premier League Preview: Aston Villa Vs Hull City, Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Saturday, 5th December, 2009, 15:00 GMT

The Villains will be looking for a repeat of last season's performance where John Carew scored the only goal in a tightly fought game in front of almost 40,000 fans.

Martin O'Neill will be hoping that John Carew can strike again as he returns to full fitness and a probably first team place after a hamstring injury. Stewart Downing will also be in the Aston Villa squad after a fruitful return to action in the Carling Cup victory over Portsmouth, scoring in the 4-2 victory.

Unfortunately for O'Neill, he will still be without the services of Wilfred Bouma (toe), James Collins (calf), and Curtis Davies (shoulder), who will all be absent with persistent injuries.

The Tigers are also suffering from a few injuries, with the major concern being Seyi Olofinjana, who is still out with a hamstring injury sustained whilst on international duty for Nigeria. Club captain Ian Ashbee is still out with a long standing knee injury.

Both clubs will be free of suspended players, with both clubs on a good run of form. Phil Brown's men have been performing valiantly since the return of Adam Pearson as club chairman which coincided with the long awaited return to fitness of club record signing Jimmy Bullard who has been in inspirational form since his return.

The Tigers have had two wins and two draws in the last four outings, most notably the one all draw against Manchester City's multi-millionaires last week. Villa have had their fair share of tricky fixtures of late, with a difficult game against Tottenham Hotspurs last weekend that saw them gaining a credible draw against this season's surprise package.

Phil Brown will be hoping to continue the clubs fine run of form for another week with some very tricky fixtures on the horizon in the lead up to Christmas, but O'Neil will be trying to maul the Tigers and get his Villains back in to the European spots.

Earlier on this season I took a look at how the Tigers were faring this season compared to last season in Hull City: A Comparison .

In that article we saw that the Tigers were doing fairly well against last season's results in the first eight games. Overall, despite the great start to last season, we were doing pretty good.

As we come towards Christmas and the most congested part of the season, I thought it would be a good idea to see how East Yorkshire's finest were doing now, comparing like for like fixtures rather than just games played.

The criteria I will be using is how many points we gain this season in comparison to last season against the same clubs. I will substitute promoted clubs for relegated teams with Championship Winners Wolverhampton Wanderers replacing Newcastle United, who were 18th in the Premiership. Second place Birmingham will take the place of 19th place Middlesbrough, and playoff winners Burnley replace bottom-placed club WBA.

Last season's points will be in italics and this season's in bold.

Chelsea (A) One, Zero . 1 - 0

Tottenham (H) Zero , Zero . 1 - 0

Bolton Wanderers (H) Zero , Three . 1 - 3

Wolverhampton (A) Three , One . 4 - 4

Sunderland (A) Zero , Zero . 4 - 4

Birmingham City (H) Three , Zero . 7 - 4

Liverpool (A) One , Zero . 8 - 4

Wigan Athletic (H) Zero , Three . 8 - 7

Fulham (A) Three , Zero . 11 - 7

Portsmouth (H) One , One . 12 - 8

Burnley (A) Three , Zero . 15 - 8

Stoke City (H) Zero , Three . 15 - 11

West Ham (H) Three , One . 18 - 12

Everton (H) One , Three . 19 - 15

Manchester City (A) Zero , One . 19 - 16

So, in the Tigers' first 15 games of the season, they have garnered three fewer points than last season from the same clubs. However, with Hull City on just over a point a game form, they are sitting a few places off the relegation zone.

Will Phil Brown's men be able to sustain that level of football for the rest of the season? If they can, they should be fine, but if the Tigers can't keep their current good run of form going, they may well end up perilously close to the relegation zone, if not in it.

In the aftermath of Hull City's battling draw at Eastlands against Manchester City, the football world is starting to ask just how did the Tigers season get the much needed kick up the backside?

There may be no one single reason why, but many have seen the Tigers gain eight points from a possible 12 in the past four games with two very good wins and two well deserved draws. This is in stark contrast to the meagre three wins in 30 previous games.

The Hull City revival looks to have been sparked by the return of Adam Pearson, but this would be a very simplistic view just as the media pinpointed the half time team talk at Eastlands last season as the point were Hull City's demise began.

Jimmy Bullard's equalising goal celebration at the behest of Paul McShane and Stephen Hunt was a mock up of Phil Brown's half time team talk. This helped to disprove the misconception that Phil Brown lost his dressing room and was still looking for it somewhere in the vicinity of the KC Stadium car park.

However, the return of Adam Pearson can't be ruled out as one of the major turning points in Hull City's season. His arrival made Phil Brown focus his energy. Brown's relationship with the previous Chairman Paul Duffen was far too much as one of friends on a journey. Pearson has returned the Manager-Chairman relationship to the tiered nature it demands. Brown had previously been on family vacations with Duffen and that is something that is never going to happen with Pearson.

Pearson has the club's best interests at heart after the journey he took the club on when he took over the failing Tigers way back in 2001. He won't let his heart lead his head and I feel he has let Brown realise that if he wants to remain in charge he needs to put Hull City first not Phil Brown.

It is an interesting point that under Sam Alladyce's tutelage Brown learnt that if he was publicising Phil Brown, he was publicising Hull City, as Alladyce did at Bolton Wanderers for so many years. Although, this worked well for Alladyce at Bolton because they grew slowly and steadily. At Hull City, Brown was thrust front and centre into the media spotlight because of the meteoric rise for the club in it's debut Premier League season.

Brown tried to play the same sort of role as Aladyce, but as anyone who knows the British media, they can turn on you for looking the wrong way, and that is what they decided at Eastlands last year. Brown had over stepped his welcome and the media put a huge target on his back.

Pearson has made him take more of a back seat in the PR stakes in order to get his very talented manager back on track. So far this seems to be working.

Another point that needs to be addressed is the return to fitness of key players. Yes, the major talking point has been Jimmy Bullard because of the record fee paid for him by the Club but just as important if not more so is the return to fitness of Anthony Gardner in the centre of defence.

Gardner's career has been blighted by injuries. He was picked for England whilst at Tottenham Hotspurs but due to injury was sidelined then struggled to win his place back. He went to Everton on loan and got another injury, which helped the Tigers to sign him but yet again he has suffered by long term injuries.

The team has looked more solid at the back whenever he has pulled on the Amber and Black of the Tigers but so far in his Hull City career it has been on too few occasions. Coupled with this the loss of Michael Turner to Sunderland for a bargain basement price his return to full fitness could not have come at a better time.

Another string to the Tiger's resurgent bow is the gelling of a team that has had to swap and change due to new players, and international fixtures. The players brought in to the fold this season have been playing all over the world in vital World Cup clashes.

Jozy Altidore was playing for the US National team in Mexico, Honduras, and Costa Rica. For a young player with undoubted talent, the challenge of getting to know your new team mates and international travel, it can leave you jetlagged and fatigued. It has been an uphill struggle for the young man.

Yet, despite this, we are starting to see the players full potential. His strength, pace and energy are making the Hull City forward line a formidable force, and a definate handful for defenders.

Kamel Ghilas was away playing for Algeria in the hot bed of Egypt then the sudden death play-off in the Sudan to qualify for the World Cup. Stephen Hunt, Kevin Kilbane and Paul McShane have all been involved in a little match with no small amount of controversy.

The Republic of Ireland's recent playoff against France could have distracted them but if anything it has made them more focused and determined to demonstrate their abilities.

As a fan of football and Hull City in general, I find the thought that Hull City's season was destroyed by the half time team talk at Eastlands ludicrous. Football isn't that simple. The players on the field that day knew they had let down their manager, their fans and their team mates. Brown didn't loose the dressing room that day, he lost the media that day, the PR battle was lost.

Pearson's return has made Brown, the players, and the fans get realistic about the Hull City again. Paul Duffen, for all of his media background, was not very good at the public relations game. After the club's fine start to last season telling the world that we would be qualifying for Europe was naive in the extreme.

Pearson is more level headed and grounded. he knows that we need time to grow. We need to get our football boot  truly in the door of the Premiership and get established as a team and that doesn't come over night.

Brown isn't without fault but if he had had good leadership form his chairman then he would not have been put in the situations that he has by the media. Brown has made some very good signings and if they can remain fit and healthy, his team will flourish in the Premiership.