Hull manager Shota Arveladze heaped praise on in-form striker Oscar Estupinan after the Colombian international’s hat-trick secured a 3-2 win for the Tigers against Coventry.
Estupinan struck either side of Matt Godden’s equaliser from the penalty spot to give his side a 2-1 lead at half-time, and he sealed all three points just before the hour mark, increasing his goal tally to seven from six league appearances since signing in the summer.
Coventry pulled one back through striker Godden just past the midway point in the second half, but they were unable to find the much-coveted equaliser and remain bottom of the table with one point from three matches.
“A good quality striker has his own qualities,” Arveladze said of Estupinan.
“The boys understand that he needs more balls in the 18 (yard box) and he’s good there.
“He’s searching, he’s going, he’s dominating, he doesn’t leave easy balls for others, so he blocks, he goes to the first post and makes his goals and makes more points for us.”
Asked about Estupinan being a poacher, Arveladze added: “They call this Pichichi in Spanish – that’s someone who is chasing all the time around the two posts and having headers, having these knocks, moving the central defenders away from the positions, which is good.”
Coventry came into the match buoyed by the announcement earlier this week that they will be hosting their first home match of the season against Preston on Wednesday, after the pitch at the Coventry Building Society Arena – ruled dangerous after it was used for the Commonwealth Games rugby sevens tournament – was finally deemed safe.
The ongoing saga meant Coventry’s last outing came 14 prior to their Hull appointment – a 3-2 defeat away at Millwall – and they found themselves behind after 11 minutes, with Estupinan on hand to head home after captain Lewie Coyle’s right-footed shot was saved by Simon Moore.
Mark Robins’ men thought they had drawn level seven minutes later when Godden headed Fankaty Dabo’s cross past Matt Ingram, but the linesman flagged for offside.
Not to be denied, Godden got his goal and Coventry’s leveller just before the half-hour mark, sending Ingram the wrong way from the penalty spot after Kasey Palmer was brought down in the area.
It looked as though the teams were going to head into the break on level terms until Estupinan pounced for his second goal of the day after Moore made a hash of Coyle’s cross.
Coventry’s task was made even more difficult in the 56th minute as Estupinan was again on hand to complete his hat-trick after Coyle’s cross from the right-hand side was met by Callum Elder and turned back across goal.
Godden halved the deficit in the 69th minute after substitute Martyn Waghorn’s corner was flicked on by Michael Rose, but Coventry were unable to claim a share of the spoils.
“We were poor,” manager Mark Robins said.
“We kept giving the ball away too easily and then giving goals away is becoming a bad habit, so the goals that they’ve scored today, we’ve gifted them.
“That’s seven goals in three away matches that we’ve conceded. We’ve scored five. We can’t do that and not get more points than that.”
