The view from Hull: 'Marco Silva has turned things around'

How has your season gone so far?

Probably as a lot of Hull City fans expected. A dreadful pre-season saw Steve Bruce walk out of the club, along with all of the coaching staff. Mo Diame left and there was no investment until the last two days of the transfer window.

Somehow, though, despite having a squad so threadbare that we could barely string seven substitutes together, we managed to win the first two games and against the champions Leicester City, no less.

But since then it’s pretty much been downhill, conceding goals left, right and centre and I think fans could be forgiven for accepting the harsh reality of relegation early on.

However, Mike Phelan was sacked in early January, and under Marco Silva, suddenly there is a sense of optimism again. This will be his third league game and to see the fans are already singing his name shows that he must be doing something right.

What impact has Silva had on the club?

He’s come in and he’s turned things around almost immediately. He’s brought in seven new players, including Lazar Markovic, and in fairness we haven’t seen too much of them yet, but any signings are good signings at the moment.

I think in terms of the whole club there seems to be a lot of confidence and optimism around the place; from the fans to the players, everyone seems to be positive.

In interviews the players talk about the work ethic he has come to Hull with. He’s always on the training ground, working hard and so far it’s paying dividends.

With the exception of Fulham away in the FA Cup, performances have massively improved and he’s getting results – we’ve just beaten Manchester United and we hammered Bournemouth.

In which areas have you improved most?

Defensively we look so much better. There’s actually some organisation and shape back there, which for the most part has been missing this season.

The work-rate on the pitch has also taken a visible jump: players are pressing and really working for each other. Our performance at Old Trafford proved that.

The likes of Tom Huddlestone and Harry Maguire seem to have really responded to his ways, coming on leaps and bounds in the past few weeks.

What’s the best case scenario for Hull in the remainder of the season?

In a word: survival. We’re not in a position to think about anything else at the moment.

How are Hull different to the side we faced at Anfield earlier this season?

How long is a piece of string? I was actually at that game and the differences from that side to this are huge. Firstly, with seven new signings, the personnel will be different.

Tactically we are much more aware of the opposition, the players seem to have some positivity, we might actually have the bottle to go for it today and hopefully we’ve stopped shooting ourselves in the foot. We conceded two penalties that day. It was dreadful to watch from a Hull City point of view.

Who is Hull’s danger man?

Abel Hernandez is the obvious choice now Robert Snodgrass has gone. The striker is high on confidence at the moment, having scored three since his return from injury in January. If he gets the right service, he can make Liverpool pay.

Who is the unsung hero?

Tom Huddlestone. The midfielder has to be the most improved player under Marco Silva.

Against Manchester United on Wednesday he was a joy to watch, calm on the ball, willing to do the dirty work at the back and able to knock it past a player and start a counter-attack with just a single touch. A far cry from the Tom Huddlestone that began the season under Phelan.

What have you made of Liverpool this season?

I’ve obviously not watched every game, but from what I have seen I’m impressed. Especially in the opening few weeks, they were almost unplayable, that fluidity between Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho was quite simply awesome.

They’ve dropped off a bit of late, but I expect that now Mane is back in the fold, their form could pick up again. Hopefully after Saturday, though.

Which Liverpool player is the biggest threat to your hopes of getting something from this one?

Roberto Firmino. I’m a big fan of his. In the reverse fixture at Anfield, he ran the game from start to finish. He must be allowed no space on the ball, but I’m confident Harry Maguire will keep him quiet.

Predictions?

I can’t be the only Hull City fan who fancies an upset today. Liverpool haven’t travelled well to the smaller teams and their form is hardly the best going into it.

Conversely, we’re riding high on the back of a win and a draw against United in the space of a week.

It all depends who gets the first goal I think. If Hull can get it, I fancy them to go all the way, and vice versa. It will be tightly contested, but we’ve beaten Liverpool at the KCOM before in the past and to be honest I think we could beat them again. I’ll go for 2-1 to City.