Hull move five points clear of drop zone with Estupinan winner

Hull extend unbeaten away run to six courtesy of Óscar Estupiñán’s late tap-in while Blues fall to back-to-back defeats for the first time since August.

While Blues mustered up the first chance of the game with a hopeful shot from distance by Juninho Bacuna, it was Hull who looked the most threatening in the opening encounters.

Smart work from Tigers midfielder Greg Docherty to dispossess Bacuna on the edge of his own box sent the hosts a warning sign inside the opening ten minutes. The no.8 found a small opening just inside the area before his shot was blocked swiftly by a Blues shirt to send it up and over for a corner.

One warning sign seemed to not be enough for Blues, however, with John Ruddy hesitating with his upfield clearance to allow Óscar Estupiñán to get a foot on the boot upfield. A surge of orange and black shirts in the follow-up finally dropped to Regan Slater in acres of space 20 yards from goal before the 23-year-old dragged his shot narrowly wide of the left-hand post.

Birmingham meanwhile always looked an aerial threat with a long ball finding Troy Deeney on the edge of the box with the captain flicking the ball down to his forward partner Tahith Chong. The former Manchester United man dropped to the floor just inside the area under a wave of appeals from the home fans. Before the referee could wave away any possibility of a spot-kick, Deeney was on hand to fire his half-volley low into the bottom corner but an alert Matt Ingram was equal to it.

The visitors continued to look lively in the final third with plenty of joy to be found out wide. Seri’s free-kick from the far side caught the Blues defence by surprise as he took the low road, dropping to Sean McLoughlin with his low effort denied by the Birmingham keeper.

Bacuna continued to pose questions as the half drew to a close, with a searching delivery just evading the on-running Marc Roberts only to follow it up with an effort of his own – a powerful strike from 25-yards out swerving down the keeper’s throat much to Ingram’s delight. One of John Eustace’s side’s best chances and spell of the half.

Hull came flying out the blocks for the second 45, with Jacob Greaves’ deliveries causing pandemonium in the hosts’ penalty area. A lofted ball to the back post found Estupiñán with his header blocked while Alfie Jones’ follow-up was sent high and wide from six-yards out. A head in hands moment for the Tigers defender.

The Hull skipper then found the Colombian striker once again with a low ball this time, diverting the ball goalwards and turned behind for a corner.

A rather quiet night for Tahith Chong brightened up on the hour mark, getting the better of his man 20 yards out in order to get the shot off and force a sharp save from the Hull shot-stopper low down to his left. A spell of possession for Blues soon followed but Hull’s ability to threaten on the counter was not to be understated. Quick play from the visitors resulted in Docherty finding space on the right-hand side, allowing him to curl an inch-perfect ball to Ryan Longman whose diving header found the back of the net – only for the celebrations to be cut short courtesy of the offside flag.

In what had been a performance of several bright moments, it was a moment to forget for Bacuna, losing the ball in his own half with several orange and black shirts ready to pounce. Substitute Tyler Smith found Christie on the overlap with the Irish international finding Estupiñán at the near post. The no.19 got the wrong side of Roberts to tap home for his tenth goal of the season and a second in back-to-back games.

A sign that it just wasn’t going to be Birmingham’s night as a Roberts’ long throw found the head of Krystian Bielik, with his flick-on dropping to Auston Trusty. The American knew little of it though with the ball bouncing off his heel and out of touch as the opportunity went begging.

In its dying moments, Hull didn’t look to settle with a one-goal lead, Christie dispossessing Jordan Graham on the edge of his own area but failed to find Smith with the through ball, much to the frustration of the 24-year-old looking for his first goal since August.

A last glimmer of hope for the hosts fell at the hands of Ruddy, with the keeper in amongst the Hull box in the final seconds. A lofted ball from Jonathan Leko to the back post found the former Wolves shot-stopper with his header glanced narrowly wide. A frustrating finale for Blues who struggled to mount a serious challenge on Ingram’s goal who will look to reassert themselves in the promotion race as they welcome in-form Middlesbrough on Monday.

Line-Ups:

Birmingham (3-5-2): Ruddy; Sanderson, Roberts, Trusty; Colin, Bacuna, Bielik, Hannibal, Longelo; Chong, Deeney.

Subs: Etheridge (GK), Graham, Chang, Bellingham, James, Leko, Jutkiewicz.

Hull (4-2-3-1): Ingram; Christie, A. Jones, McLoughlin, Greaves (c); Docherty, Seri; Sayyadmanesh, Slater, Longman; Estupiñán.

Subs: Lo-Tutala (GK), Elder, Figueiredo, Tufan, Woods, Smith, Simons.

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