Ruben Selles refused to castigate his Hull players after a limp performance in a 1-0 loss at Watford left the Tigers still in danger of relegation.
Moussa Sissoko netted the only goal early in the second half to prevent City from moving clear of their relegation rivals.
Hull finished Tuesday in the same position in the table as they had been when they kicked off – 19th.
Stoke moved level on 44 points thanks to a draw with second-bottom Luton, however, while Derby and Cardiff, the clubs in 21st and 22nd places respectively, each moved to 42 points with draws of their own.
It could have been worse therefore but a timid display suggested Hull have much hard work still to put in to reach safety.
“The result was not what we wanted,” Selles said. “We were competitive but we lacked a little bit of cleanness in the final third – the final pass, the final finish.
“Sometimes you don’t get the result you want. We need to get more from the games we play. When I came in we were rock bottom. We had to fight for everything and we’re still in that fight.
“We are trying and we are showing that we are competitive. There are fine margins in the game and we need to keep fighting.
“There was no lack of urgency. We had an emergency situation in the first 20 or 30 seconds with a shot from 30 metres (from Edo Kayembe) that hit our bar but we managed to get back into the game.
“The second half started the same way, but we got back into the game. We didn’t create that final moment and we need to continue to develop our performances in the final third.”
The game’s only goal arrived in the 55th minute when Caleb Wiley, the 20-year-old Chelsea loanee, exchanged passes with Rocco Vata down the left and crossed for Sissoko to leap and flick home from close range.
Watford manager Tom Cleverley hailed former France midfielder Sissoko, who is now 35, for his all-round performance as well as his goal.
“I thought he was outstanding all night,” he said. “He is an inspiration to the young players on how to live your life and what an elite player looks like.
“You only have to look at his international caps to see that. We have senior heads in there but Moussa is the flag-bearer. I couldn’t be more proud of a team that has three teenagers.
“In the second half we came out with a spark, got the goal and then managed the game really well.
“We have played a lot better than that this season and not got maximum points, especially recently, but we have got to look at what we are working with – players who have not played many games in their careers. They will all learn from this experience.”
The win revived Watford’s slim hopes of making the play-offs.
“Until it is mathematically out of the question we will keep pushing for that,” Cleverley said. “I want this group to be the one that gets this club back on an upwards trajectory.”
Mikel Arteta said he is ready to give his life to deliver a trophy for Arsenal after he apologised to the club’s fans for ending the season empty handed.Declan Rice’s second-half strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 win over Newcastle and confirmed their place in the Champions League.However, the Gunners failed to launch a serious title challenge to Liverpool this season, and they are set to ...
Jamie Vardy reflected on an “amazing” and “rollercoaster” career with Leicester after scoring a landmark 200th goal in his 500th and final appearance for the Foxes.The 38-year-old former England striker reached the goal milestone in the 28th minute of Leicester’s home match with Ipswich when he latched on to James Justin’s through ball and expertly slipped it be...
Mikel Arteta apologised to Arsenal supporters for failing to deliver on his dream of ending the club’s two-decade wait for a Premier League title.Declan Rice’s second-half strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 win over Newcastle and confirmed their place in the Champions League next season.However, the Gunners failed to launch a serious challenge to Liverpool this season and are set to finish ...
Interim boss Liam Fox welled up with tears as he reflected on his “pride” at leading Hearts to four straight wins before departing his boyhood club as they prepare to confirm Derek McInnes as their new manager on Monday.With McInnes set to bring his own backroom staff with him from Kilmarnock, it was announced on Saturday that Fox – a childhood Jambo who started both his playing ...
Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor heaped praise on her side’s new celebrity investors after multi-millionaire entrepreneur Alexis Ohanian and his wife, tennis great Serena Williams, flew over for their FA Cup final triumph at Wembley.Sandy Baltimore scored a brace either side of a Catarina Macario goal as Chelsea sealed an unbeaten domestic treble with a 3-0 victory over Manchester United in fron...
Declan Rice’s second-half strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 win against Newcastle at the Emirates and a place in next season’s Champions League.Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya kept his side in the match with a string of fine saves prior to the interval before Rice delivered from range with 55 minutes gone.Arsenal’s victory moves them five points clear of third-placed Newcastle with jus...
Marco Silva says Harry Wilson will “want to play Brentford every week” after he stung the Bees for a second time this season with the winner in Fulham’s 3-2 west London derby victory at the Gtech Community Stadium.Wilson, who had his contract extended until next summer this week and also scored a stoppage-time double in Fulham’s 2-1 win over Brentford in November, replicate...
Tony Docherty thanked Lyall Cameron for an outstanding career at Dundee after the midfielder signed off in style with a double in victory over St Johnstone.Cameron, who penned a pre-contract with Rangers in February, inspired a 2-0 win that eased the Dark Blues away from the relegation play-off place.The 22-year-old netted after 28 minutes and rounded off a man-of-the-match display with a stoppage...
Nuno Espirito Santo and his Nottingham Forest players dedicated the 2-1 win over West Ham which kept their Champions League hopes alive to stricken team-mate Taiwo Awoniyi.Striker Awoniyi is recovering from emergency abdominal surgery, having been placed in an induced coma, after colliding with a goalpost in last weekend’s Premier League home draw against Leicester.The 27-year-old revealed o...
Michael Wimmer says he is delighted with how Motherwell have ended the season after wrapping up their William Hill Premiership campaign with a 1-1 draw at Ross County.The Steelmen trailed to a Ronan Hale goal on the half-hour mark but improved drastically in the second half and dominated the game in Dingwall.That pressure eventually told, with Moses Ebiye heading in an equaliser with seven minutes...
- 1 Richie Wellens hails Leyton Orient’s ‘outstanding’ victory over Stockport
- 2 We will see – no Unai Emery assurances over future of tearful Emiliano Martinez
- 3 Arsenal offer £135k deal to seduce target
- 4 Mikel Arteta ready to give his life to deliver silverware for Arsenal
- 5 Leyton Orient book Wembley date by beating Stockport on penalties
- 6 Chelsea beat Manchester United in FA Cup final to seal domestic treble
- 7 Mikel Arteta apologises for failing to deliver Arsenal a Premier League title
- 8 Liverpool cleared to complete signing
- 9 Brendan Rodgers hits out at ‘needless challenge’ on Reo Hatate
- 10 Marc Guehi to land transfer to Real or Barca