Joe Gelhardt and Abu Kamara scored in the second half, leading the City’s Tigers to a win 2-0 at the MKM Stadium in the English Championship on Tuesday night over Plymouth Argyle.

This victory allowed Hull City to distance themselves from the Championship relegation zone. They are now five points clear, while a struggling Plymouth Argyle is six points away from safety.

Rubén Sellés made four changes to his lineup following Cardiff City’s recent defeat. Abu Kamara, João Pedro, Steven Alzate, and Gustavo Puerta were newly included, while Eliot Matazo, Matt Crooks, Lincoln, and Regan Slater were benched.

The Tigers created several chances early on, including Gelhardt’s free-kick that hit the defensive wall and missed headers from Puerta and McLoughlin. Conor Hazard made key saves to keep Plymouth in the game.

In the 48th minute, Gelhardt broke the deadlock, scoring after a deflected attempt. Coyle then assisted Kamara, whose cross led to Joseph’s initial shot being saved.

City extended their lead after an hour when Puerta set up Kamara for an easy finish into an open net. As the match neared its end, McLoughlin’s shot went over, and Plymouth’s attempts, including a header from Wright and a shot from Ogbeta, failed to find the net.

Mustapha Bundu’s team has not achieved an away victory in 18 Championship matches this season, scoring only six goals – and they never appeared close to breaking that dismal streak after going behind, even against a Hull team that holds the worst home record in the league.

Plymouth head coach Miron Muslic said: “We simply didn’t show up in a game that we knew was a big one for us.

“There are too many players who cannot deliver consistently the performances that we need to be competitive. The reality in the Championship is fighting for every inch on the pitch, and we missed this today completely.

“The second goal, with all due respect, this player (Pedro) is one-and-a-half metres offside. I think at this level we should see this.”