Sheffield United 0 Hull City 3: Blades left searching as Tigers appear to have found something

With the transfer window open, both sides had a fresh look but only one seemed comfortable in their skin. Hull's not at all flattering 3-0 win was their fourth under Ruben Selles, one more than his predecessor Tim Walter managed.

The Blades have been good at recovering from bad first halves – even this week – but it deserted them on a rainy night in South Yorkshire.

Wilder made a triple substitution before the hour, changed formation to 4-4-2 at 1-0 and at two seemed to have midfielder Sydie Peck and Vinicius Souza sharing right-back duties before abandoning the idea altogether to go with a wing-back on the right, a full-back on the left.

None of it made the blindest bit of difference.

When these sides met in September it was Hull who looked all over the place. Selles has moulded them into a unit.

With Andy Cannon making his debut and Ben Brereton Diaz his first start since the last time he was on loan at Bramall Lane, Sheffield United looked messy throughout. Passes were loose, touches sometimes elephantine and although Harrison Burrows nearly scored from a corner Ivor Pandur scrambled from under his crossbar, there were too many poor deliveries too.

Hull had their moments too, but they were generally much sharper, helped by the physical presence of another debutant, Kyle Joseph, and another first starter, Matt Crooks, as well as a willingness to go direct to them when the situation demanded.

It was from a Blades mistake that Hull opened the scoring.

It was also from one of their corners – ironic given they took the lead in the reverse fixture from a Tigers' flag kick.

Peck's pass gave the ball to Abu Kamara as the visitors broke and when the winger picked out Alfie Gilchrist rather than Joseph from his pass, Gilchrist kindly gave the ball back. Crooks smashed it in, after six minutes.

After Joe Gelhardt, he was the second Hull player to mark his full debut that way this week. No wonder Hull are looking to add to their six signings, four of whom made it onto the Bramall Lane pitch.

The other two goals came from substitutes, adding to the sense of Selles' golden touch.

Kamara had a shot blocked after Gilchrist gave the ball away, won it back, and instantly returned it.

Brooks had an airshot from the edge of the area.

Not that the home team had a complete monopoly on mistakes. Alfie Jones slipped and gave the ball to Andre Brooks, who checked back and crossed for Callum O'Hare to head over. He missed the target soon after with a diving header.

The centre-back's poor touch would concede a later corner but he also did well to get across when Brereton Diaz was released, and threw himself in the way of McCallum's shot early in the second half.

Cody Drameh's poor touch let in Burrows but he made up for it by blocking the shot.

Chris Wilder resisted the triple substitution he made at Swansea City, but with few signs of improvement beyond another header Pandur did well to keep from under his crossbar, it came 11 minutes later.

Just before it did, Selles introduced Matty Jacob – for now Hull's only senior left-back after the departure of Ryan Giles – and it would be decisive.

Initially it looked as if Sheffield United's switch to 4-4-2 would be, Tyrese Campbell almost immediately finding the net only to be flagged offside when Sean McLoughlin appeared to be playing him on.

So instead it was Jacob the difference-maker, staying upfield after delivering a cross and getting in front of Gilchrist when it came back in from Drameh to make it 2-0.

Joao Pedro capped it off by gamboling past Anel Ahmedhodzic as he ran toward the already jubilant away fans. Burrows tried to cut out the shot, but put it in off a post.

"Can we play you every week?" sang the Hull fans.

"Can we play like this every week?" might have been a pertinent question. If they can, relegation can be forgotten about. Sheffield United will surely not be this bad very often, much as Leeds United and co might hope they do.

Sheffield United: Cooper; Gilchrist (Rak-Sakyi 65), Ahmedhodzic, Robinson, McCallum (Souza 56); Peck, Burrows; Brooks (Campbell 56), O'Hare, Brereton Diaz (Brewster 56); Cannon.

Unused substitutes: A Davies, Baptiste, Norrington-Davies, One, Blacker.

Hull City: Pandur; Drameh, Burns (Jacob 55), Jones, McLoughlin; Slater (Puerta 75), Alzate; Kamara, Crooks (Matazo 55), Joseph (Joao Pedro 65), Gelhardt (Burstow 75).

Unused substitutes: Vaughan, Smith, Lo-Tutala, Amrabat.

Referee: A Kitchen (Durham).