Livermore returns to haunt Hull
WEST BROM manager Slaven Bilic says he was proud of his side’s performance to grind out a win over in-form Hull.
The Baggies weren’t entirely comfortable at the KCOM Stadium and when Kamil Grosicki missed the target after being put through on goal, the league leaders could have fallen behind.
Jake Livermore, who spent three-and-a-half seasons as a Hull player before joining West Brom in 2017, scored the only goal of the game, firing home from distance.
“Credit to both teams,” Bilic said. “It was a good game and it was a game which two teams came into with confidence, both teams have had a great run in the past few games.
“We expected that, they are very good at transitions, the way they had their chance with Grosicki, it’s typical Hull.
“All in all it was a good performance for us, the only thing that was missing was the goal, we created not too many clear-cut chances. To be fair they didn’t create a lot later in the game when they were gambling and the wingers were staying up. We managed the game really well.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly it was Bilic’s outfit who dominated the early encounters, with Darnell Furlong picking out Grady Diangana in the area after 21 minutes, but his header went over the crossbar.
Just two minutes later, though, Grosicki should have opened the scoring. The Poland international’s run into the area was picked out by Jackson Irvine, but he lacked the conviction to make the most of the chance, putting his tame shot wide from 12 yards.
Matt Phillips stung the palms of the City goalkeeper George Long with an effort from outside the area and, from the resulting corner, West Brom took the lead.
A short corner found its way to Livermore, who was in acres of space on the edge of the area, and he punished his old side for their slack defending by lashing the ball home in the 29th minute.
The Tigers rallied before half-time and did find the back of the net themselves as the in-form Jarrod Bowen poked home, only to see his celebrations halted by a raised flag.
The Baggies weren’t exactly in control in the second half but, in the space of a minute, they missed the two best scoring opportunities since the break. First the lively Diansecond gana dragged a shot wide, before Matheus Pereira followed suit. The Baggies, though, had done enough to maintain their two-point cushion at the top of the league.
Despite the defeat, Hull boss Grant McCann was pleased with parts of his side’s performance. “First half West Brom were much better than us,” he said. “We didn’t lay a glove on the, we gave them too much respect and they’re a top team.
“I was disappointed with the first-half performance, but in the second-half I thought we were the better team.
“In the whole game I thought we had the best chances. On another day we’d have taken it. That bit is frustrating. We have been ruthless over the past 10 games, but today we wasn’t.”