Premier League survival fight: Stakes are high as Hull and Boro battle to stay up

Not necessarily in terms of quality, relegation scraps at this time of a year can often be nervy and error-ridden affairs.

But, bearing in mind just what is at stake for Hull City and Middlesbrough, the meeting at the KCOM Stadium could prove to be one that not only lives long in the memory but also has huge ramifications for the two clubs.

A Hull victory and the “miracle” Marco Silva spoke about being needed to keep the club up when succeeding Mike Phelan may well be a step nearer. Equally, if Boro fail to claim a first three points since mid-December against the team sitting directly above them in the table then their top flight obituary can surely start to be written.

On the flipside, a Boro win could both breathe fresh life into their own season and sound the death-knell for a Tigers side who have back-to-back away games against Manchester City and Stoke City to come after tonight.

Silva is acutely aware of the importance that is attached to this all-White Rose showdown but he is adamant that City’s players should not get distracted by the bigger picture.

“We will play this game like we played the last game against West Ham,” said the Portuguese, fresh from a 2-1 win over Slaven Bilic’s side that means his five home league games have yielded 13 points.

“We played to win the game and against Middlesbrough we will do the same, just like we did against Swansea as well. We know that if we win we can cause problems for our opponent but, sure, this is a tough game for us.”

Asked if a Hull victory could effectively relegate Boro due to it stretching the gap between the two clubs to seven points, Silva replied: “We think like that, yes. But Middlesbrough will be thinking the other way. They will want to get close to us. That is normal when you prepare for these games.”

City have been in the relegation zone since October 22. Boro, in contrast, dropped into the bottom three for the first time much more recently but the momentum is very much with the hosts ahead of tonight’s clash.

A lack of firepower has been Boro’s big problem, their tally of 20 goals from 29 outings being comfortably the lowest in the top flight.

Aitor Karanka paid the price for this wretched return last month and the task of masterminding an escape from relegation now lies with Steve Agnew, Steve Bruce’s assistant at Hull when the club reached the 2014 FA Cup final.

Agnew’s men again drew a blank last Sunday in a goalless draw with Swansea City that suited Silva and his side, as it means a home victory tonight coupled with the Swans failing to beat Spurs at the Liberty Stadium will be enough to take the Tigers out of the dropzone.

Considering Boro need to quickly make inroads into their points deficit on both Hull and Swansea, they could tonight be expected to throw caution to the wind. Silva, though, does not agree and is expecting the visitors to follow their usual gameplan.

“Middlesbrough have very little margin for error so, no, I do not expect that,” he said. “They will play decisive games between now and the end of the season. It is the same risk for both teams.”

Tom Huddlestone is again missing for the hosts, serving the second of a three-game ban following his dismissal at Everton before the international break. Diemurci Mbokani (hamstring) and Omar Elabdelloui (back) are also out along with long-term injury absentees Ryan Mason, Moses Obudajo and Will Keane.

Evandro, though, could return after five games out with a calf problem as City look to make it 40 league games unbeaten for their head coach at a variety of clubs.

Silva, for his part, is keen for his side to shake off a tendency to start slowly on home soil, as was the case last Saturday when West Ham dominated the first half and led through Andy Carroll.

“When you analyse the games this is true,” he said when asked about the manner in which the Tigers have been more impressive in the second half under his charge.

“We give feedback to the squad at half-time and they understand. I hope in this game that we start the first half well, if it is possible. We start to command the game through the first half.

“It is always important to play with intensity and we will try to pass that on to our players.

“When we play at home, we need to command the game with the ball.

“Sometimes, the other team will do the same but we have to prepare and start strong.”

Last six games: Hull City LDLWLW, Middlesbrough WLLLLD.

Referee: M Oliver (Northumberland).

Last time: Hull City 3 Middlesbrough 0; November 7, 2015; Championship.