Five Things in EFL: New Year’s Hopes and Fears

We need to talk about Hull City. No, we really do that.

Four wins during a five-match unbeaten run was eye-catching enough, but when you consider that those victories came against Wrexham, Millwall, West Bromwich Albion and Middlesbrough, it’s time we took notice.

These wins also came without the tournament’s second-highest goalscorer, Joe Gelhardt, who could be out for at least another two weeks before he can add to his 10 goals, while winger Mohamed Belloumi also joined the casualty list.

Under their former coach Sergej Jacerovic, the Tigers quietly crept into fourth place, two points off the automatic promotion places.

“I am very happy because we are playing well and we will try to move forward, but it will not be easy because everyone is suffering from injuries,” Jakirovic said after the victory over Middlesbrough on Monday.

A title winner in his native Bosnia as well as in Croatia, he knows how to get the job done, but maintaining it with limited trading capacity in the January transfer window will be a test of his skills.

Also, before any East Yorkshire fans get too excited, they might want to take a look at Thursday’s opponents Stoke when they arrive at the MKM Stadium (15:00 GMT).

In second place at the end of November, the Potters’ poor run of five defeats from their past seven games now leaves them in 10th place, four points off the top six.

Fortunes can change quickly in football, especially with the tournament in disarray.