Hull City face Brentford for the first time in a top-flight fixture. BBC Sport examines some of the key themes going into their meeting at MKM Stadium on Sunday.

Hull find themselves in the paradoxical situation of having made a strong start to the season despite failing to win any of their past five matches.

That run has included draws with both Chelsea and Everton after falling behind, while history suggests that Hull's tally of nine points after seven matches offers an excellent chance of Premier League survival.

Of the 13 promoted teams to have amassed exactly nine points at this stage, only five went on to be relegated. The most recent of those was Norwich City in 2015-16.

The bedrock of Hull's early promise has been an unbeaten start at home, with a win and two draws so far. Across the past 11 seasons, the only two promoted teams to remain undefeated in their first four home games were Wolves in 2018-19 and Sunderland last season. They both went on to finish in seventh.

The Tigers' success so far, both home and away, has been built on picking the right moment to go after opposing teams.

They rank just 15th in the Premier League for high turnovers (defined as winning the ball within 40 metres of your opponent's goal), yet only three teams have recorded more shots that have originated from a high turnover.

In other words, Hull City are selective as to when they press but often do so effectively in dangerous areas.

Hull next face a Brentford side who have conceded more high turnovers than any Premier League side other than Aston Villa; an unwelcome statistic for a visiting team with an unwelcome habit of throwing away points this season.

Two red cards were reasonable mitigation for Brentford's 2-1 loss to Liverpool last weekend, a game in which they took the lead through Keane Lewis-Potter. It means that Brentford have now dropped an unrivalled 11 points from winning positions in 2026-27.

If ill-discipline and late goals have both been factors in Brentford's failure to see out games, so too has been the form of forward Igor Thiago.

The Brazil international was a vital part of their success last season and scored 22 goals, but he has managed just one in seven outings so far this season, despite an expected goals total of 3.69 - compromising Brentford's ability to kill off matches.

Thiago, though, can take confidence from his record against promoted clubs, scoring six goals in his past six Premier League appearances against them.

If Thiago's form was to improve this weekend, it could end a curious hoodoo for the Bees: they have not won a top-flight match in Yorkshire since 1947, drawing four and losing one of their five visits in the Premier League.