Hull City head coach Nigel Adkins has said he feels the side are now starting to build some momentum as we head to the end of the season.
With Adkins not hiding his disappointment at only taking a point from Barnsley in our last clash, we head into this weekend’s match against Ipswich Town with two wins and a draw from our last four matches and the gaffer believes that’s exactly the type of form we need to show to move clear of the dropzone and ease our worries.
Our recent form has seen us move three points away from the dropzone in 20th place and Adkins is determined to see the side build on that.
Speaking to the Official Site as he met with the media to preview the game, the former Southampton gaffer explained.
‘Tuesday was another game undefeated and we`re building momentum. That`s an important thing and particularly at home where we`re now unbeaten in eight. We look strong and our performances consistently have been good. Yes, I was disappointed with us in the first half on Tuesday night against Barnsley because I didn`t think we were at the level that we had been at previously.’
Adkins went on to say.
‘There was a little bit of frustration around the stadium in the first half, which is understandable, but the supporters continued to get right behind the players and that is what we need. We responded to going behind in the game, which is a good sign. We now have an away game against Ipswich on Saturday and then we`ve got another game at home next Tuesday and another game at home on the Saturday. We`re in a relegation fight, and we are fighting. We fought to get back into the game against Barnsley, and were then in the ascendancy to try and win the game.’
In terms of the injury situation ahead of the game, Evandro will continue to be assessed having missed out on the Barnsley match with what Adkins described as a small injury problem, but the jury is out on whether it’s big enough to keep the 31 year old out this weekend as well.
‘He`s done great recently, playing two 90-minute games and then the 70-odd minutes man-of-the-match performance against Sheffield United the other night. He`s working extremely hard and it`s a shame that he missed Tuesday night. It`s just a little injury. He wasn`t available so we`ll see how he goes, and we`ll have to wait and see for Saturday.’
Abel Hernandez could also come into his thoughts this weekend but Adkins is determined to not take a risk with him and his original Achilles injury.
‘I wanted him to be available for last night but when you`ve got a player that has been out for a long period of time, the last thing you want to do is risk him and put him out for even longer. That`s the last thing we want to risk because we`re heading into the closing stages of the season. It`s great that he is so close to a return, though, because he is a talented, talented footballer.’
