Congratulations to Hull City on returning to the Premier League. For me, it feels more like coming full circle.
01Liverpool · ten years earlier
The first trip
Ten years ago, it was my first time abroad and my first time setting foot in Britain. The first Premier League match I saw in person was Liverpool against Hull City.
The ticket I bought outside the ground was actually for the Hull City away end. At the entrance, a Liverpool steward looked at the Liverpool shirt I was wearing, took off his own black jacket and put it over me. He warned me sternly: ‘Keep it on the whole time. Whatever you do, do not let the shirt show.’
02The away end · Anfield
The decision
As for the match itself, an extraordinarily large Hull supporter stood in front of me — one and a half times my height and twice my width. For the entire ninety minutes, he was like a mountain, blocking my view completely.
But after that match, in which I had barely seen a thing, I made a decision: I was going to stay.