Liam Rosenior believes Ozan Tufan is reaping the rewards his efforts deserve after his hat-trick helped Hull to a 4-2 Championship comeback win at home to Sheffield Wednesday.
The Turkey international was at times unplayable, with his performance – some could say – emblematic of the difference in quality between the two Yorkshire sides.
Rosenior said: “It (the hat-trick) was better than good. He deserves it and I’m so happy for him.
“The reason the quality is there is because the fitness is now there – that sums up his attitude.
“He is working so hard. He’s pressing so hard from the front along with Liam (Delap). And when you work so hard in life, you get the rewards.”
Wednesday were poor, but they somehow took the lead after 36 minutes when Juan Delgado capitalised upon Dominic Iorfa’s low cross via a deflection.
Hully equalised in first-half injury time when Lee Gregory elbowed Jacob Greaves inside the box and – from the resulting spot-kick – Tufan scored an unstoppable penalty.
The Turkey international then stole the show after the interval by firstly scoring a wonderful second from the edge of the penalty area after 58 minutes.
With Wednesday out of ideas and fatigued, Tufan put the game out of sight with a similarly-precise finish with the inside of his right foot.
Substitute Aaron Connolly made it 4-1 after he passed the ball into an open net following Michael Ihiekwe’s poor back-pass.
And though Wednesday substitute Michael Smith added a touch of respectability to the scoreline in stoppage time, Owls fans may have few qualms with the result.
Rosenior: “I’ve got to give the players all the credit in the world – they were fantastic from start to finish.
“They responded brilliantly (from the opening goal) and also by how I want to build as a club.
“In my opinion, it was complete domination from start to finish. That was not a 4-2 win. We should not have conceded a second and it should have been more.
“If you look at us now, we are much fitter and more front-footed as a team.
“We must stay consistent and keep working but there are some really, really positive signs.”
Wednesday have now lost their first two games since gaining promotion from League One.
Manager Xisco Munoz said: “The second half we were very far away from what I want.
“I didn’t see the balance for a consistent performance, but the situation right now is to control emotions.
“We need to control the moments and we need to improve with duels – both in offence and defence.
“We needed to improve on many things, but every day we get better and better and get closer, but we need to find a solution.
“We need to improve about clean sheets and defensive situations, but this is my job. They called me for this situation, and I will give 100 per cent.
“It is my responsibility. The players gave everything, but we now have to improve our tactics and our fitness.”
Munoz, who ironically signed Tufan when in charge at Watford two years ago, added: “We need the balance – this is the situation.
“The first half was closer to the performance we want, but we didn’t do it in the second half.
“The intensity in the second half was the difference. This is one of the situations we need to improve.
“This team has more capacity for attacking, but we need to work very hard about the balance, with more time on the ball and playing higher.
“We need to understand better about what the Championship demands.”
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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