EPL: Hull City hold Villa to dull draw as Tigers extend unbeaten start

Hull City’s unbeaten Premier League return continued with a 0-0 draw against Aston Villa, although the match offered little attacking excitement at the MKM Stadium.

Hull came closest to breaking the deadlock when Mohamed Belloumi’s curling effort struck the crossbar. Villa also had a clear opportunity, but Emiliano Buendía missed from close range after George Hemmings created the chance.

The result gave Hull seven points from three matches and preserved a remarkable defensive record. The Tigers opened with a 2-0 win over Manchester United, followed it with a 1-0 victory away to fellow promoted side Coventry City, and have now gone three league matches without conceding.

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Finally finished, thank God! Now we can concentrate on our job.

Villa improved defensively after opening defeats by Brighton and Arsenal, but their attack again failed to produce a goal. They entered the match without a point and without a shot on target in their first two games. The draw provided their first point, but they remain scoreless after three matches.

Hull manager Sergej Jakirovic credited the club’s work during the transfer window. “Finally finished, thank God! Now we can concentrate on our job,” he said before the match. He added that the club had worked hard to recruit quality players after losing 12 from last season. That work has left Hull second in the table, while pressure continues to build around Unai Emery and Villa’s new-look squad.

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I am pleased because we have worked very hard this last two months, a lot of calls, a lot of negotiations with players. We always had our plan to bring quality that we can improve our team but don’t forget also we lost 12 players from last season, so we needed these players.