Hull climb into third as Crooks strikes at Portsmouth | OneFootball

Match in Five Sentences: Hull City beat Portsmouth 1-0 at Fratton Park. In the first minute, Joe Gelhardt's effort from the centre of the box was saved by Nicolas Schmid after Lewis Koumas found him. After the restart, substitute Matt Crooks settled it with a low finish from the centre of the area (73.). Portsmouth dominated with 66.4% possession and 21 attempts, yet were denied by five saves from Ivor Pandur. Hull rise from fifth to third and visit Ipswich next, while Portsmouth remain 19th and head to Blackburn.

Player of the Match: Matt Crooks came off the bench to score the winner and then put in the hard yards with three tackles and six recoveries as Hull saw it out.

Stat of the Match: Portsmouth registered 21 attempts, yet none beat Pandur, underlining wasteful finishing against a deep defence.

Three Things We Learned: Crooks' introduction gave Hull a sharper outlet and his decisive strike showed their clinical edge. Portsmouth slung in 39 crosses and won 11 corners but still could not turn territory into a finish. Hull's defence cleared 49 balls and won 76.0% of tackles, a numbers-backed display of resilience.