FA Cup preview: Hull City vs Everton - A tie which could spell the end for both managers
Unloved and unwanted, Rafa Benitez and Grant McCann will be hoping the magic of the cup brings some much-needed respite on Saturday evening.
The League One title followed last season but with the Tigers in the lower reaches of the Championship again, the Northern Irishman will not be missed should Ilicali's first task be to dish out a P45.
Rafael Benitez, too, looks to be a dead man walking with injuries to key players only partly mitigating an alarming slide down the Premier League table and run of one win in 12.
When: Saturday, January 8, 17.30 GMT
Where: MKM Stadium
Both teams coming into the game on the back of defeats
Hull City go into this game on the back of two defeats but prior to that had enjoyed a six-match unbeaten run which lifted them out of the Championship relegation zone.
The run came to an end with a 2-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest, a match in which they led before being pegged back by a controversial penalty for which the referee's chief later apologised.
A COVID outbreak saw two games postponed over the festive period and they were under-cooked for a trip to Blackpool which they lost 1-0. Nevertheless they had more than enough chances to get at least a point from the game - something of the story of their season.
Everton welcomed Dominic Calvert-Lewin back for their home clash with Brighton at the weekend but despite two goals from 20-year-old Anthony Gordon were left empty-handed.
Last meeting
Everton 4-0 Hull City 0 (March 18, 2017)
Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Enner Valencia and a Romelu Lukaku brace sealed a comfortable Premier League win against a City side who were in the midst of something of a revival under Marco Silva.
FA Cup form for Hull City and Everton
Hull bowed out in the second round on penalties to League Two side Stevenage last season and have twice exited the cup at the hands of Arsenal since their cup final defeat to the Gunners in 2014.
Chelsea have also knocked the Tigers out twice since their only cup final appearance.
The East Yorkshire side have not beaten a top-flight side in the FA Cup while outside the top division since a 1-0 win over West Ham in the fourth round in 1973.
Last season they exited at the hands of Manchester City in the quarter-final, with late goals from Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne condemning a full-strength Everton to a 2-0 defeat.
You only have to go back three years to the last time they bowed out to Championship side, with a 3-2 defeat to Millwall in 2019 sending them packing in the fourth round.
Past 10 meetings
Hull wins: 2
Draws: 2
Everton wins: 6
Hull scored: 10
Everton scored: 24
Calvert-Lewin's involvement a quandary for Benitez
With few options in reserve, hot prospect Keane Lewis-Potter looks set to keep his place, while Tom Huddlestone will be hoping to roll back the years. The 35-year-old former Spurs midfielder was a free agent before rejoining the Tigers just after the start of the campaign.
The England striker is in desperate need of minutes after a long injury lay-off but whether he starts will depend very much on which risk Benitez thinks is greater: playing and suffering another injury setback or not playing, Everton bowing out and the Spaniard losing his job.
Championship survival the priority for Hull
But given Hull's woeful record against top-flight sides in the competition - even when they reached the final they only beat one Premier League team and that was Sunderland - they may be disappointed.
Everton, in contrast, can afford to give the FA Cup their full attention. They are still eight points clear of the relegation zone despite their recent slide. With defensive reinforcements in the shape of Mykolenko and Patterson, both of who should start here, and Calvert-Lewin to call on up front, they will be looking up rather than over their shoulders for the remainder of the campaign.
And, with Benitez desperately needing to restore the feelgood factor to the blue half of Liverpool, a prolonged FA Cup will be an ideal way to start winning over the haters.