- Head-to-head: Stoke have won three of their last five against Hull City, with the Tigers winning the other two.
- Home form: Stoke have conceded 10 goals in their seven home games across all competitions this season (W2, D1, L4).
- Away form: Hull City have conceded just six goals in their six away games across all competitions this term (W3, D1, L2).
Potters face a tough challenge in the Tigers
Context
A Premier League Hull City side will test the Stoke players to their full in the Carabao Cup second round, with the early-season momentum and rotation likely to play a key role on Tuesday night. Mark Robins' side have won three of their last five matches against Hull City, with the reverse fixture, a 1-0 victory in the Championship 2025/2026, being the most recent.
The last two visits to the Bet365 Stadium, however, have seen the Potters fall short, with Hull City taking at least a point on both occasions. This is a well-poised H2H that has leaned Potter-friendly in recent times, but Hull should be the best bet here.
Tactics
Robins prefers a 4-2-3-1 formation that plays structured possession football, moving the ball quickly and forming a compact mid-block without the ball. Sergej Jakirović's Hull City, on the other hand, usually play a transition-first 4-3-3 or back five, they will press their opponents in waves before hitting on the break.
Hull City on a high
Recent form
Stoke's recent five-match run of 3-1-1 was punctured by a 1-2 loss to Swansea City at home in the Championship 2026/2027, so they will need to bounce back here. Hull City have won two, drawn two and lost just one of their last five, drawing 0-0 with OGC Nice and losing 0-2 away to Eintracht Frankfurt in the most recent three. Across all competitions, the Potters have won just three of their last ten (D2, L5), while Hull City have won five (D3, L2), so the Premier League side definitely have the form edge and they should have the edge in this game.
Best bet is to take the visitors
Hull City are listed at 2.34 ahead of Stoke at 3.0, but they have the class edge and the form advantage so it would be foolish to back anything but the visitors here. The draw is listed at 3.25 and both teams to score at 1.7 makes sense considering how the game will flow.
A 1-1 draw looks the best exact score call for this one, as Hull City may need to keep it tight and rely on Oli McBurnie, who has two goals in Hull's last five, to come through.
