There was to be no Boxing Day delight for Hull City at Deepdale as their troubles continued with a 1-0 defeat against Preston North End.

Having seen off Swansea City before Christmas to lift some of the gloom which had come with a 13-game winless run which was ended on Saturday, that positivity evaporated in Lancashire with a defeat which left fans, players and manager equally frustrated.

It was also a defeat which saw the Tigers fall back into the bottom three at the halfway point of the season and time starting to run out to turn this season around.

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Here's the top talking points from another day to forget for the Tigers....

A damaging defeat

If Saturday's win over Swansea lifted spirits, this was a performance and result which brought everybody back down to earth with a thump, and it would have hurt.

A dominant start to the game should have seen City go in front, but Regan Slater's troubles in front of goal continued, and after failing to convert their impressive opening into a lead, they allowed the hosts to gain a foothold in what turned out to be a dire game between two poor sides struggling at the wrong end of the table. It was there for the taking, because Preston were poor on the ball, but City were just not good enough to take advantage.

Had City been able to snare a point, you'd have probably taken it, given the way it panned out overall, but instead, you're coming away feeling deflated about a result and, more concerningly, a performance that was really low on quality. There's no lack of effort from the players; they're just struggling with the quality when it really matters.

On a positive note

It might get lost in the fact that City lost, again, but their structure looks much more solid under Selles. They look more organised, they're trying to get the ball forward quicker and with greater purpose. There's much less faffing around needlessly around their own box, and that bodes well.

As do the performances of Steven Alzate and Gustavo Puerta. Alzate looks a composed performer in the middle of the park, and was especially effective in the first half, showing some really clever touches while Puerta is a player reborn under Selles. His drive, touch and ability to carry the ball forward is a real positive.

While this was another defeat and an inherently frustrating one at that, there were still some positives to come out of a defeat that should never have happened.

There has to be a response

Selles' players have just a few days now to dust themselves down and go again at Blackburn Rovers on Sunday afternoon, and they'll need a response given the way results have gone on Boxing Day.

You can lose games in the Championship, it happens. It was the manner of this defeat which will annoy the manager, and so, too, the supporters who made the long trek across the M62 and up the M6.

The injury nightmare continues

While some of City's performances this season have been called into question, and rightly so, the players they've missed have made a massive difference, and that can't be underestimated. Not having Liam Millar and Mohamed Belloumi has been a big problem, as it would be if you took two of the best attacking players out of any team.

Throw into that Carl Rushworth, who has been unavailable, and now Charlie Hughes joins Kasey Palmer in being sidelined; it really has been a disastrous season so far.

Finish the year on a high

In truth, given how 2024 started with so much promise and then that desperate 3-1 defeat at Sheffield Wednesday, which almost set the tone for how the year should go, most fans associated with City will be glad to see the back of it.

Aside from the odd game here and there; that terrific week back in February when City won in such dramatic fashion at Rotherham, Huddersfield and then Southampton and the three wins coming close together earlier this season, the year has been one to forget and may well end with them sat inside the bottom three.

It's a grim reality for City supporters, who will hope to at least finish the calendar year with a positive result at Blackburn Rovers on Sunday afternoon.