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Player Ratings: Hull City 0-1 Leicester City

Sports Mole looks at the players' performances in Hull City's 1-0 defeat to Leicester City.

Bottom-of-the-table Leicester City ended a 13-game winless streak in the Premier League with a hard-fought 1-0 win away to Hull City.

Riyad Mahrez's first-half strike proved enough to give the Foxes their first win since beating Manchester United 5-3 back in November.

Hull threw the kitchen sink at Leicester in the closing stages, with Paul Konchesky and Stephen Quinn both sent off late on for very different reasons.

Here, Sports Mole analyses how the players performed at the KC Stadium.


Robbie Brady of Hull City holds off Matthew James of Leicester City during the Barclays Premier League match between Hull City and Leicester City at KC Stadium on December 28, 2014© Getty Images

HULL CITY

Goal

Allan McGregor: Could do nothing about the goal and was virtually untested apart from that. (5/10)

Defence

Jake Livermore: Started in an unfamiliar right-back position before eventually going into midfield. Also unlucky not to score after striking the post midway through the second half. (5/10)

Alex Bruce: Shackled Ulloa very well throughout the Argentine's 55-minute spell on the field, but looked a liability against Schlupp at times. (5/10)

Curtis Davies: Produced one crucial tackle to deny Wood on 56 minutes, but should have perhaps done better after firing straight at Hamer from close range later on. (5/10)

Liam Rosenior: Perhaps slightly culpable for the goal after backing up Mahrez, before paying the penalty. Decent going forward, but his involvement in the goal might haunt him. (5/10)

Midfield

Ahmed Elmohamady: Contributed well in defence and attack, but guilty of missing the game's best chance by tapping Quinn's cross over the bar from close range late in the first half. (6/10)

Stephen Quinn: Swung in some fantastic crosses that should have been converted. Sent off late on for a cynical handball. (5/10)

David Meyler: Largely ineffective in the middle of Hull's midfield and perhaps guilty of playing one or two Hollywood passes at times when keeping it simple might have been the better option. (4/10)

Robbie Brady: Looked lively at times but his often pinpoint delivery from set pieces let him and the Tigers down multiple times throughout the clash. Not his best game. (5/10)

Gaston Ramirez: Arguably Hull's best player in the first half but found himself sacrificed for Jelavic after the break. (6/10)

Attack

Sone Aluko: Very industrious performance as Hull's spearhead but lacks the bit of quality needed to fire them away from the relegation zone. (5/10)

Substitutes

Nikica Jelavic: Had one really good chance but headed over the bar. Bruce would've expected him to convert opportunities like that. (5/10)

Abel Hernandez: Constantly involved and unlucky not to score after hitting the post, but his finishing left a little to be desired. (6/10)

Thomas Ince: Nowhere near as influential as Hernandez and frankly looked a little out of his depth. (4/10)


Riyad Mahrez of Leicester City scores the opening goal during the Barclays Premier League match between Hull City and Leicester City at KC Stadium on December 28, 2014© Getty Images

LEICESTER CITY

Goal

Ben Hamer: Made amends for his error against Spurs with a crucial save to deny Hernandez in the final five minutes. Not as tested he should've been overall. (6/10)

Defence

Danny Simpson: Again showed Pearson why he deserves the right-back shirt ahead of De Laet with another faultless performance. (6/10)

Marcin Wasilewski: Struggled with the jet-heeled Aluko at times in the first half but coped much better with Jelavic from that point onwards. (6/10)

Wes Morgan: Almost scored an own goal but the skipper played a massive role in helping Leicester keep Hull at bay this afternoon. (7/10)

Paul Konchesky: Struggled with the lively Elmohamady at times and deserved his second yellow card. He could have been sent off quite a few times in truth. (5/10)

Midfield

Riyad Mahrez: Scored the only goal of the game to reinvigorate Leicester's survival bid in 2015 - and a very good goal it was, too. (7/10)

Matty James: Worked hard throughout with a very combative performance. Deserves to retain his place for the trip to Liverpool. (7/10)

Esteban Cambiasso: Excellent midfield performance from the veteran Argentine, who expertly dictated the play for Leicester this afternoon. (7/10)

Jeffrey Schlupp: Never got to use his blistering pace as often as he would've liked due to Elmohamady covering him. (5/10)

Attack

David Nugent: Completely anonymous and somehow managed to stay on for 90 minutes, but set up Mahrez for the winner. (6/10)

Leonardo Ulloa: Another very quiet game for the Argentine, who was largely anonymous as their spearhead and withdrawn on 55 minutes for Wood. (4/10)

Substitutes

Chris Wood: Found himself instantly involved after replacing Ulloa on 55 minutes, but his influence gradually waned. (5/10)

Richie De Laet: Helped Simpson down the right-hand side as Pearson battened down the hatches on 70 minutes. (6/10)


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Riyad Mahrez of Leicester City scores the opening goal during the Barclays Premier League match between Hull City and Leicester City at KC Stadium on December 28, 2014
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Match Analysis: Hull City 0-1 Leicester City
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