You would never have thought Middlesbrough would go to Manchester United and beat them.
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“But these things happen in the cups in our country”.
Bruce could point out he made 10 changes in the previous round when Hull eliminated Leicester on penalties and, overall, he was entitled to think they acquitted themselves reasonably well for an hour.
A final throw of the dice in the 73rd minute by Bruce brought a standing ovation from the 5,000 travelling City fans as Robert Snodgrass made his first team return after 16 months on the sidelines.
Pellegrini said: “We must try to recover the players for Tuesday. We have to enjoy the challenge of it, to enjoy playing in a quarter-final again”.
The match will be a return for both Adam Lallana and Nathaniel Clyne, who joined Liverpool from Southampton.
A repeat is, by no means, unthinkable considering how up and down the form of Stoke and Everton has been in recent weeks.
‘It’s a quarter-final of the Capital One Cup and it’s a big game for us all so we’ll all be chomping at the bit to play.
Beginning with Davies, he focused on Friday’s disappointing defeat to Derby County, and he told the Official Site that he was confident Hull would show that the game had just been a blip rather than anything more as we continue to push for promotion.
“(A) ten per cent (chance of winning) against Arsenal was realistic. I’ll have to talk with him tomorrow.
“We’ve been punished and that’s the lesson you take – you get punished for any mistake you make against the big boys and you don’t get bigger than them”. But I am not insane.
“I am so happy to reach the next round and want to keep going”. “We were very solid and we didn’t allow chances for Hull to score”.
“Maybe we will make some changes but not so many as Zabaleta, Kompany, Mangala and Nasri are all out”, said Pellegrini.
For the hosts they fell for the electric Silva, who hit the side netting from a tight angle, and Bony, who sent an effort straight at Eldin Jakupovic from distance.
Aguero looked in some pain after his ankle appeared to buckle on landing after an aerial challenge in the second-half, although manager Manuel Pellegrini confirmed after the match that he was substituted only as a precaution.
“The result (at Bournemouth) is not easy to take, but we need to move forward and learn from these type of games”. They are an outstanding squad of players.
And Pellegrini was at a loss when quizzed on his team’s performance after the game. They don’t blood five or six youngsters.
Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling accepts his place in the starting line-up is not guaranteed and that means he has to work harder to achieve his ambitions at the club. Up until 81 minutes, we were in there.
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But an under-strength Hull, who threw on Uruguayan top scorer Abel Hernandez with 23 minutes to go, did not buckle, although Steve Bruce’s side were unable to overly trouble City goalkeeper Willy Caballero.
