After slipping further into relegation trouble earlier in the week, West Bromwich Albion open up the gates at The Hawthorns on Saturday afternoon, when Hull City are the Championship visitors.
The Baggies were moments away from securing their first league win of 2026 on Wednesday night, whilst the Tigers enjoyed a mammoth away success one day prior in North Wales.
Match preview
Following Jayson Molumby‘s second goal of the Championship campaign on Wednesday night, it appeared as if West Brom were heading towards their maiden league victory of 2026, however an added-time Cyle Larin header snatched a point for Southampton away from home.
The Baggies possess the longest current winless run in the division at 14 matches, with the Black Country side last tasting triumph in the second tier at The Hawthorns against Queens Park Rangers on December 29.
Southampton’s last-minute heroics earlier in the week – coupled with crucial wins for both Leicester City and Oxford United – mean that West Brom have dropped to 23rd position in the Championship standings, a single point from safety with nine matches remaining.
Interim head coach James Morrison stated that Wednesday’s commendable performance against the Saints needs to be the ‘benchmark’ for what remains of the 2025-26 term, with Albion looking to avoid relegation to League One for the first time in over three decades.
In the midst of a 17-game drought in front of goal, West Brom’s leading marksman Aune Heggebo is struggling for confidence at the top of the pitch, whilst six-goal attacker Isaac Price has failed to find the net since January.
© Imago / IMAGO / Focus Images
Surviving the dreaded drop to League One on goal difference on the final day of last season, Hull City are fighting at the other end of the Championship, battling to secure a spot in the Premier League following a nine-year absence.
The Tigers’ March duties commenced with damaging losses to promotion rivals Ipswich Town (0-1) and Millwall (1-3), however Saturday’s visitors responded excellently on Tuesday night, beating playoff hopefuls Wrexham at the Racecourse Ground.
Scoring his side’s second of the North Wales occasion, Liverpool youngster Lewis Koumas has made a seismic impact in the Premier League chase for Hull, despite being deemed surplus to requirements at previous loan club Birmingham City in January.
Collecting a respectable nine points across their last five second-tier battles, the Tigers are sitting fifth in the Championship table ahead of this weekend’s trip to the Black Country, six points behind second-placed Middlesbrough and nine points ahead of Southampton in seventh.
Hull have fared woefully at the West Midlands base of West Brom for the majority of the past two decades, with the East Yorkshire side winless across their last 10 matches (D2 L8) at The Hawthorns, where they most recently enjoyed victory in October 2008.
West Bromwich Albion Championship form:
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West Bromwich Albion form (all competitions):
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Hull City Championship form:
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Team News
© Imago
Deployed at centre-back versus Southampton on Wednesday, West Brom’s Alfie Gilchrist is set for another start this weekend unless Nat Phillips returns to the XI.
Interim boss Morrison has recently enjoyed employing a two-man forward line in the form of top goalscorer Heggebo and injury-prone Daryl Dike.
A number of attacking options remain sidelined for the hosts this weekend, including Mikey Johnston (leg) and Karlan Grant (hamstring).
Quickly becoming a fans’ favourite during his opening Hull appearances, Bristol City loanee Yu Hirakawa is now sidelined for the remainder of the campaign due to a knee injury.
The Tigers are battling on without the creative services of Ryan Giles, who is expected back in April from a hamstring problem.
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
O’Leary; Imray, Gilchrist, Campbell, Styles; Wallace, Molumby, Diakite, Price; Dike, Heggebo
Hull City possible starting lineup:
Pandur; Hughes, Egan, McNair; Drameh, Lundstram, Slater, Millar; Gelhardt, Koumas, McBurnie
We say: West Bromwich Albion 1-2 Hull City
Possessing the second-best away record in the Championship, Hull City will be confident of taking maximum points at The Hawthorns this weekend.
Wednesday night’s last-minute Southampton equaliser was a sucker punch for West Brom, who might struggle to respond positively versus the promotion-chasing Tigers.
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