Hull City duo Abel Hernandez and Mohamed Diame both scored their first goals for the club but they were only good enough for a 2-2 draw with West Ham United in the Premier League clash at the KC Stadium on Monday.
Curtis Davies’s own-goal ultimately ensured a share of the spoils after Hull twice lost the lead.
Hernandez’s header put Hull 1-0 up at half-time only for opposite number Enner Valencia to top it with a superb piledriver from 25 yards.
“He only got here on Saturday afternoon, Sunday he was training and he was desperate to play,” said Hull manager Steve Bruce of Hernandez. “I’m so pleased we did it, even though he can hardly move now, but he’ll be fine.”
A second City debutant, Mohamed Diame, starting against the club he left on deadline day, then restored the lead with an opportunistic goal after pickpocketing an errant West Ham throw-in.
The visitors levelled again when Diafra Sakho’s low shot escaped Allan McGregor and was turned home by defender Curtis Davies, teeing up a tense finale that peaked when Valencia’s injury-time header was deflected off the crossbar.
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce highlighted Valencia’s stunning effort as the key moment, the Ecuador striker marking his first league start with an effort that will surely keep him in the XI for the foreseeable future.
“Our first goal is one of best we’ll see this season and we’ve seen some terrific goals already,” said Allardyce. “The power and accuracy of the shot ... it was past McGregor before he could move.
“It stunned the whole ground, the place went silent I think. It was that good a goal but it was very important to get back in the game.
“I thought we then took control for long periods and we had one or two chances to score but then we gifted them the second.
“I’m thinking ‘come on lads, you can’t allow us to play like this and not get anything’ and we did bounce back very quickly.”
Follow us on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE
