Debut goals from Hull pair Abel Hernandez and Mohamed Diame were only good enough for a draw against West Ham as a Curtis Davies own-goal ensured the spoils were shared in a breathless Premier League encounter at the KC Stadium last night.
The home side lost the lead twice, club record signing Hernandez getting the ball rolling with an impeccable first-half header from Ahmed Elmohamady’s cross and Diame restoring the advantage against the side he left on transfer deadline day with a nonchalant finish off the inside of the post.
In between Enner Valencia had marked his first league start with a blockbuster strike from 25 yards and the 2-2 draw was settled when Diafra Sakho’s modest shot evaded Allan McGregor, only for Davies to bundle over his own line.
Valencia almost won it in added time when his header rebounded off Dawson’s shoulder and rattled the crossbar, but that might have been harsh on the home side.
Hull can be particularly pleased with the contribution of Hernandez, who also clattered the woodwork in a display that looked a good down payment on the £9.5 million (Dh56.6m) sent Palermo’s way, while Diame was desperate to impress against his former employers.
West Ham, meanwhile, can rightly be enthused by the forward pairing of Sakho and Valencia, who showed real understanding on their first outing together.
It was, in many ways, a shame for the match to be settled by the messiest goal in four, and McGregor in particular will be aggrieved having made two fine saves in the match.
Davies hailed the contribution of Hernandez who only joined his team-mates in training on Sunday having finally received a visa.
Davies said: “It’s early days, you usually say they need to get up to the pace but from the finishing point of view it doesn’t look like a problem. He maybe needs to get up to the physical side of it but I hope he can carry on like that”
Meanwhile in Serie A, an own goal from Eros Pisano gave Hellas Verona a 2-1 win over Palermo – their first of the season.
Franco Vazquez had put Palermo ahead in the 18th minute before Luca Toni equalised from the penalty spot before half-time.
