Hull City vs Stoke City. Sky Bet Championship.
MKM StadiumAttendance24,601.
Report and free match highlights from the Sky Bet Championship match between Hull City and Stoke City at the MKM Stadium on Good Friday | Josh Laurent and Ki-Jana Hoever help Steven Schumacher's Potters to priceless win in relegation battle
Friday 29 March 2024 18:12, UK
Play-off chasing Hull's poor home form again cost them as second-half goals from Josh Laurent and Ki-Jana Hoever earned relegation-battling Stoke a 2-0 win at the MKM Stadium.
Hull went into the game with seven wins out of 19 at home this season and were on a run of just one win in their last 10 Championship matches at the MKM.
Defeat dropped Hull two places to ninth in the table as the Potters moved five points clear of the drop zone.
Stoke did not start like at team at the wrong end of the table, forcing a corner after a minute, and from their next five minutes later Michael Rose could only steer a low delivery from Sead Haksabanovic wide of goal.
Hull tried to respond but a volley from Anass Zaroury was well off target following a long kick by Ryan Allsop.
Sean McLoughlin headed wide as Hull forced two corners in quick succession and then the defender, in for suspended skipper Jacob Greaves, headed another chance over as the Tigers started to exert more pressure.
Regan Salter's surging run was ended with a foul by Rose and Zaroury's free-kick was scrambled clear for a corner just before the half-hour mark, but Alfie Jones headed the delivery well over as both sides struggled to carve out a clear opening.
Stoke captain Laurent was booked for his challenge on Fabio Carvalho and was then warned by referee Graham Scott he risked another after arguing about the caution.
Stoke's Mehdi Leris headed a free-kick tamely at Allsop with 10 minutes of the half remaining in the only on-target effort of the first half.
Noah Ohio flicked on rather than shooting from a Carvalho low cross and Jones headed a free-kick wide.
At the other end Haksabanovic shot over as Hull struggled to clear from their own area in the final action of a poor first period.
The game desperately needed a spark at the start of the second half but both sides continued to struggle to find a cutting edge.
Ryan Giles again probed down the left as the hour approached but his cross was headed wide by Ohio.
Hull broke through substitute Abdulkadir Omur but when his pass found Jaden Philogene the forward's shot failed to trouble Daniel Iversen when he had team-mates better placed.
Jordan Thompson shot high and wide after working an opening on the edge of the Hull area but shortly after the visitors went in front from a corner.
Ryan Mmaee headed towards the left post where an unmarked Laurent side-footed home from close range with 21 minutes to go.
Leris forced Allsop into a save to his left, but Omur and Philogene both went close to an equaliser before Hoever fired home Stoke's second in stoppage time.
Hull's Liam Rosenior:
"There are games in the Championship when some teams have an off day, but they find a way to win. We have to find a way to win when we don't play well.
"When you don't play to your level you have to keep the back door shut and nick the win. We found a way to lose today.
"Some of our decision making in the final third, we showed such a lack of killer instinct. We didn't have a shot on target. We got let down in both boxes which is really disappointing.
"I think the fans were great. Today we didn't give the fans enough to shout about. It was brilliant to see a full house, but we didn't give them enough to get behind."
Stoke's Steven Schumacher:
"I thought we played well, I thought we were the better team from the first whistle.
"In the first half, our performance was excellent, and we just lacked a goal. In the second half we had to weather the storm for the first 10 minutes. The lads were nice and calm and stuck to the plan.
"We've got a big squad so I can't pick everyone every week. We felt in the last four games we had played well in three of them and not in the last one.
"Over the international break we had conversations with a few of the lads who started today, and we said it was up to them to come into the team and play well."
