Hull City held on with 10 men against Leicester City to earn a point from a goalless draw at the King Power Stadium this afternoon.
Nikica Jelavic should have put the Tigers in front with a chance in the first half, but it wasn't to be as they ended the fixture without Tom Huddlestone, who was sent off following two bookable offences.
Leicester played well throughout the 90 minutes, but like so many times this season, they failed to make an impact in the final third.
Discover how the game unfolded in our minute-by-minute updates below.
Hello all! We're entering the home stretch of the Premier League season and here, we'll be focusing on the bottom half of the table as Leicester City and Hull City go head to head at the King Power Stadium.
The Foxes face an uphill task of saving themselves from the drop as they sit seven points away from safety and have not won a game since their 1-0 triumph over Aston Villa on January 10.
In contrast, Hull have only suffered one defeat in their last five and the club appear to be confident that manager Steve Bruce is the right man to keep them in the top flight as they have offered the coach a new deal. They're not quite out of danger though, as they reside five points above the relegation spots.
Before we delve into the permutations of this contest, let's have a look at the teams that have been selected for today's encounter - starting with the hosts...
LEICESTER XI: Schwarzer; De Laet, Upson, Huth, Morgan, Vardy; Schlupp, Cambiasso, James, Mahrez; Kramaric
LEICESTER BENCH: Schmeichel, Drinkwater, King, Lawrence, Ulloa, Wasilewski, Nugent
The big news for Leicester is that goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has returned to the squad following a four-month absence with a broken foot. Manager Nigel Pearson does not deem him ready for a starting spot, so Mark Schwarzer remains in goal, but his fellow shot-stopper has been handed a place on the substitutes bench.
Ritchie de Leat comes in for Danny Simpson, who is missing completely from the squad, as is Paul Konchesky, which means that Jamie Vardy has been given the nod to start. Andrej Kramaric keeps his place up front, while Jeff Schlupp, Esteban Cambiasso, Matty James and Riyad Mahrez all line up in midfield. Now for the visitors...
HULL XI: McGregor; Dawson, Bruce, McShane, Elmohamady; Livermore, Huddlestone, Ramirez, Robertson; JelaviC, N'Doye
HULL BENCH: Harper, Figueroa, Davies, Meyler, Hernandez, Aluko, Quinn
Steve Bruce has made just the one change to the side that sealed a 1-1 draw with Sunderland last week as Gaston Ramirez comes in for David Meyler, who has dropped to the bench for this afternoon's encounter.
Leicester fans, here's a fancy graphic of your starting XI if you care to take a look...
Today's starting XI #LeiHul pic.twitter.com/CWrwSWaktc
— Leicester City (@OfficialFOXES) March 14, 2015
Now, the result of this game could potentially be huge in terms of who stays up and who faces the dreaded drop. As mentioned earlier, Leicester are seven points away from safety and they are in desperate need of points in order to claw themselves from bottom spot. If Hull manage to get the away win, then you'd think that reaching the 30-point mark will give them a bit of breathing room where the relegation battle is concerned.
Earlier this week, Bruce mentioned the importance of claiming 30 points. He told reporters: "Whether you play Leicester or one of the top teams, you know it's going to be difficult.
"If we can beat Leicester it's going to be difficult for them to catch us with nine, 10 games to play, and there's the incentive for us. If we can get to 30 points with nine games to play, psychologically it's a huge number."
The other games today could also prove pivotal to Leicester and Hull. Crystal Palace are on their way to a 3-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers, who reside third from bottom and three points away from safety. It's good news for Hull with Chris Ramsey's side languishing near to the bottom. In addition, 16th-placed Sunderland and 17th-placed Aston Villa go head to head at 3pm, with both teams in danger of being dragged into the Championship come the end of the season. Burnley, who are second from bottom, will go up against title chasers Manchester City in today's late kickoff, and no disrespect to Sean Dyche's side, but you would expect the reigning Premier League champions to claim all three points.
As mentioned earlier, the good news for Leicester fans is that Schmeichel is back in contention for the run-in after recovering from a broken foot. He's on the bench this afternoon, but he's been put through his paces at the King Power...
A photo posted by Leicester City (@officialfoxes) on
While Leicester may be struggling to find wins, Hull have only grabbed one victory in their last 13 away fixtures, and have only beaten Leicester once in their previous seven meetings. So, perhaps today is the day when the Foxes go on a winning run?
However, the bad news for Leicester is that no team since Portsmouth in the 2005-06 season has stayed up with the current points total of 18 from 27 games. It's a massive task for Pearson and his players, and he will be hoping that the experience of Cambiasso and attacking threat of Kramaric will come through to help push them to safety.
PREDICTION: It's a tough one to call as both teams are desperate for maximum points, but with Hull's poor form on the road, I expect a tight contest between the competitors. For me, a score draw is a strong possibility, but if there is a winner, I give it to Leicester, possibly 2-1.
We're a matter of minutes away from kickoff and both teams are lining up in the tunnel, ready to emerge onto the pitch. Let's hope for goals!
KICKOFF! Leicester gets us underway at the King Power Stadium kicking from right to left...
It's a poor pass from Cambiasso in the middle of the park, which allows Elmohamady to latch onto it and storm forward, but Schlupp puts enough pressure on him to knock it out for a throw-in.
Huth gives away a free kick in a decent area for Hull after launching a high-footed challenge on Livermore. Ramires takes it, but the ball comes off Jelavic's head in the end and it bobbles behind for a goal kick.
Dear oh dear, Matty James! Vardy does well to win a corner for the home side, but his teammate's effort fails to even get past the first man. A waste of a potentially decent chance for the Foxes.
CHANCE! Kramaric receives the ball in the wide area of the final third, but he struggles to cut inside with a number of Hull shirts swarming around him. He eventually goes for it himself, and the ball floats towards the near post of the goal, but it just goes over the bar.
At the other end, the ball is whipped into the area looking for Jelavic, but instead of trying to connect with his head, he goes for the spectacular overhead kick and it doesn't work out for him. He misses the ball and it just bounces out for a goal kick.
It's been a rather even contest in these early stages. Neither side have particularly got a grip on this game, but Leicester try to up the attack when Vardy almost finds Morgan in the box, but the high ball is cleared by Dawson.
BOOKING! Huddlestone is the first to go into the book due to a late lunging tackle on Cambiasso. The Hull man should have no complaints there.
Cambia's plays the ball out wide to Vardy, who takes it on his chest before swivelling and playing into Kramaric. After a few passes around the box, a low cross comes in, but Hull are able to clear.
Vardy does well to hold up the ball before passing right to Vardy, but Dawson is quicker than the Leicester man and gets to it first. Kramaric should have been a lot quicker there.
MISS! Oh dear, you want see a worse miss this season! The ball is launched over the top to find Huddlestone, who makes a brilliant run. He's unselfish as he knocks it across to Jelavic, who pretty much has an open goal in front of him, but the forward completely fluffs it and misses the chance. A great opportunity for the away side to take the lead.
Hull are on the attack as Robertson causes problems down the side. He delivers in a cross, but De Laet is there to knock it behind for a corner, but it's too high for his Hull teammates to attack it.
GOAL DISALLOWED! Jelavic actually scores this time after Schwarzer drops the ball into his path. However, the referee has already blown following a foul on the goalkeeper. N'Doye was the one penalised after he barged into Schwarzer, forcing him to lose grip on the ball.
Hull get exposed as it's two against two, with Mahrez on the ball, but he dodges right and gets smothered, when he could have taken the better option on the left and gave his teammates time to come into play.
Jelavic is involved again after receiving a short five-yard pass from N'Doye, but he goes for goal himself and after a vital touch from Upson, it falls into the arms of the keeper.
CHANCE! A perfect delivery into the box from Mahrez as he searches for Kramaric and he almost finds him, but the forward fails to throw himself towards the ball at the near post and it goes out for a goal kick.
Kramaric does well to create space for himself on the edge of the box, but his effort lets him down as he slices it off the right side of his foot and completely misses the target.
Leicester are ramping up the attack and even defender Wes Morgan goes for goal! He storms into the final third, and thumps one from 30 yards out, but it gets a huge defection off McShane and goes out for a corner, which comes to nothing.
At the other end, Huddlestone gets some time on the ball on the edge of the area, and instead of searching for other options, he goes for glory, but his shot fails to trouble Schwarzer and he misses the target.
BOOKING! Robertson is the second Hull player to receive a yellow card after tackling Mahrez after the Leicester man cut inside on the attack.
Mahrez takes the free kick and whips it into the line of bodies in the box, but Dawson does well to head it away for a corner, which doesn't fall favourably to Leicester.
HALF-TIME: Leicester 0-0 Hull
We are yet to see a goal at the King Power Stadium this afternoon, but both sides have shown encouraging signs. Hull really should be a goal to the good, but Jelavic fluffed his chance, and arguably, he won't get a better opportunity again. The Tigers have also looked threatening on the counter attack, but Leicester created chances of their own as the half went on.
The home side have shown positive passages of play, but it's in the final third where they have struggled to find that clinical touch. Mahrez has been a positive influence in attack for the Foxes, but Kramaric could have done better when the chances fell his way.
For Hull, Dawson has been the standout defender by cutting out a number of crosses and being the first to the ball at times when defending corners and set pieces. It's set up for an exciting second half, with both teams eager to score, and I'd expect to see David Nugent come on for Leicester at some point. He's proven in the past that with the right delivery, he can make things happen.
While we wait for the second half to begin, let's take a look at the half-time scores from around the Premier League.
Arsenal 1-0 West Ham
Sunderland 0-4 Aston Villa
West Brom 1-0 Stoke
Earlier today, Palace beat Queens Park Rangers 3-1 at Selhust Park and Burnley are in action this evening taking on Manchester City.
RESTART! The visitors Hull get us underway! Will we get a winner? We have 45 minutes to find out...
Some one-touch passing between James and Cambiasso results in the latter launching a shot at goal in the box, but Dawson gets his body in the way to prevent the effort from troubling the goalkeeper.
Leicester's attack is thwarted by Elmohamady as he latches onto the ball and knocks it back to McGregor. The home side need to come up with some fresh ideas if they are going to make an impact when it counts.
Ramirez sends in from the corner flag, but Leicester do enough to deal with it and are eventually rewarded with a free kick in the middle of the park following a high leg from Elmohamady on Cambiasso.
Cambiasso sends the ball out wide to De Laet, who storms in towards the 18-yard area, but his pass gets blocked and are once again, struggling to find the breakthrough.
Leicester seem to be sticking with the long-ball game, but it's not working as Dawson, McShane and Bruce have looked comfortable cutting out attacks when the ball heads in their direction.
Kramaric lifts the ball over the top to find De Laet, but Robertson and McShane are there to cover and knock the ball out of play for a corner, which comes to nothing for the hosts.
At the other end, Huddlestone threads the ball through to Jelavic, who delivers the cross in, but Morgan gets to it first and gives away a corner. Ramirez whips the ball in from the flag and finds the Jelavic, who heads it over the bar.
LEICESTER SUB: It's the end of Kramaric's afternoon as Ulloa enters the field of play.
Vardy does well to find space and launch a cross into the box, but it gets deflected for a corner. The ball comes in and Huth gets a head to it, but in similar fashion to Jelavic, his effort soars over the bar.
It's end to end at the moment! Elmohamady gets some space on the edge of the area, but it's a tame shot at goal from the Hull man as it bobbles into the hands of Schwarzer.
Schwarzer's called into action again, as N'Doye goes for a low shot, much to the annoyance of Jelavic, who was calling for the pass.
BOOKING! That's three Hull players in the book now as Dawson gets punished for appearing to bring down Vardy. However, on replay, it's clear that the defender got to the ball first. A poor decision from referee Jon Moss.
BOOKING! Oh dear, both sets of players surround the referee after Bruce appears to take out Mahrez. Moss gives the defender a yellow card, but he's got it wrong once again as the Hull man got the ball and had his feet close to the ground when he dived in.
The crowd are urging their team on as Cambiasso finds space to run. He launched a cross-field pass to Ulloa, but it's hit too far and the forward has too much ground to make up to catch it.
HUDDLESTONE SENT OFF! Hull will have to finish this match with just 10 men as Tom Huddlestone has been given a second yellow card for taking Vardy out less than a metre from the penalty area. It's irresponsible from Huddlestone as he trudges down the tunnel.
Mahrez stands over the free kick and slides it over to an unmarked Schlupp, who hammers a shot towards goal, but it's blocked by a sea of bodies in the box. Leicester are knocking on the door, but it's not happening for them.
LECIESTER SUBS: The home side make a change as De Laet comes off for Tom Lawrence.
Lawrence gets involved quickly as he knocks the ball right to Ulloa, but the forward is closed down and fails to turn and get a shot away. The home side are going all out, but Hull are defending well.
HULL SUBS: Hull make a double change with Meyler and Quinn entering the field to replace Jelavic and Robertson.
As we edge into the final 10 minutes of the clash, can Hull hold on for a point? Will Leicester be able to find that clinical touch that they've been lacking to gain a crucial victory? Not long until we find out.
It's a decent flick from Ulloa towards Vardy, who goes for the half-volley, but his technique is lacking and the ball soars over the crossbar and into the stands.
Mahrez gets in behind and into the box before storming towards the byline. He unleashes a shot at near post, but McGregor reads it and blocks it to prevent any blue shirts from latching on.
It's all Leicester at the moment as they try to search for a breakthrough. Lawrence tries his luck with an ambitious shot, but it's way off target and Hull can breathe again.
LEICESTER, HULL SUBS: Nugent makes his way onto the field for Leicester to replace Morgan, while Ramirez comes off for Hernandez.
BOOKING! Another Hull player receives a yellow card as N'Doye gets booked for unnecessarily blocking a Leicester free kick.
It appears that Hull are not settling for a goalless draw as they throw men forward. Hernandez gets away from his marker, but his ball into the box goes straight into James's path.
CHANCE! Nugent was inches away from giving Leicester all three points in the dying minutes! Vardy drives from his own half towards the byline and cuts it back to Nugent, who tries to slot it in at the near post, but McGregor does just enough to put the striker off his stride and he fires it wide.
SAVE! A crucial stop from Schwarzer as the free kick is taken quickly from Hull, who leave Leicester sleeping, but Hernandez's effort is poor and the keeper is able to drop to his right and gather the ball.
The fourth official indicates FOUR added minutes. Are we going to get a winner?! It looks to be a tense finish at the King Power Stadium.
Leicester get a free kick just yards from the box. Mahrez lines up to take it, but he doesn't get enough behind the ball and it swerves into the hands of McGregor.
It doesn't seem as though many Leicester fans believe that their team will find a late goal as many of them glumly make their way out of the stadium.
The home side continue on the attack as Mahrez crosses into the box from the corner flag. Upson leaps into the air and gets a head to the ball, but it goes right into the arms of the keeper.
FULL-TIME: Leicester 0-0 Hull
Well, it was a must-win match for Leicester, but it's disappointment yet again as they fail to claim all three points against 10-men Hull. The home side performed well, but like so many of their other games, they struggled to find that clinical touch in the final third.
Hull go away from this game six points above the drop zone and you feel that they are edging closer to safety, especially with Queens Park Rangers and Sunderland losing this afternoon. Make sure you stick around on Sports Mole for all the latest reaction, analysis and player ratings. Until next time, goodbye!
