Craig

If Craig Fagan could score a few more goals, he could end up being Hull City's most crucial player for the rest of this season.

Finally, we are seeing the renaissance of Fagan in black and amber and the very reason why Phil Brown, to our collective surprises, chose not only to bring him back on loan from Derby County last spring, but then make the move permanent in the summer upon promotion.

Fagan's tireless, unselfish and occasionally explosive performance as a lone striker at Chelsea at the weekend was one of the great individual displays of this season. It makes one feel sorrier that he was kicked so brutishly out of the autumnal section of the campaign by Danny Guthrie, as maybe he could have made more a difference as things began to get uglier.

Until Guthrie sent a size 10 through the back of Fagan's leg at Newcastle United in September, breaking a bone and earning a red card, the talented but eternally frustrating Fagan was showing his worth. Whether playing as a striker, his preferred role, or on the right hand side of midfield, his more regular role, his ability to irritate opponents just by never leaving things be, plus his pace, was beginning to reap real rewards for City. He was exceptional in that win at Newcastle, despite Marlon King getting the glory with both of City's goals, and had played a good, secondary role to the A-listers like Geovanni in the early period leading up to St James' Park and his injury.

Fagan has been around and about ever since his recovery, still predominantly operating down the right but now earning a freer, central role - the type he loves - thanks to a combination of Bernard Mendy's mercurial ways and the removal of the disruptive King from the changing room. He scored his first goal since returning to City in the 5-1 thrashing by Manchester City on Boxing Day, and despite the uselessness of the goal and the performance as a whole, this landmark did him the world of good. He is one of a sturdy fistful of players to have scored in three divisions for the Tigers and since the turn of the year has never looked back.

His goal against West Bromwich Albion - a flying header from Mendy's inviting cross - was most unFagan-like. By this, I mean he doesn't really have any reputation for great heading of the ball; his harshest critics would say that it was unlike him because it went in. This is Fagan's problem now - he has to start justifying his selection with goals as well as sweat.

King was a better footballer and better finisher, but he has gone now and Fagan finds himself with an opportunity to make the nippy striker's role his for the rest of the campaign and forge a partnership with the stronger, burlier Daniel Cousin when the Gabonese marksman returns from injury for the Tottenham game a week on Monday. Paucity of strikers has given Fagan his chance, but his own willingness to up his game has contributed to Brown's decision to declare his faith in the chippy Brummie.

This belief in Fagan was repaid ten-fold by the striker's performance, largely while ploughing a lone furrow, at Chelsea. John Terry will rarely have a harder time than when Fagan was running at him, fighting shoulder to shoulder for channelled balls, and not to mention Fagan's decision to issue regular verbals at the England skipper in an effort to put him off or make him crack. Terry's probably heard it all before so words won't hurt him greatly, though as a defender renowned for a lack of pace, he certainly was made to feel concerned when he and Fagan were after the same ball. Fagan's energetic working of the flanks too, when City were relying mainly on counter attacks to ease Chelsea's pressure, earned him major kudos from all observing.

Sadly though, when it came to goalscoring, he was found wanting, and this is where Fagan's problem has always been in his two spells with the Tigers. He miscued one half-decent first half chance wide, then was put through on goal with only the mistrusted Hilario to beat and in assessing how best to take the chance, chose badly. His chipped effort was plucked from the sky by the luminous keeper, with television footage later showing that the chip was going to be off target anyway. using his unselfish pass to Caleb Folan on the opening day as a benchmark, Fagan shouldn't have been going for goal anyway, as Dean Marney was unmarked and waiting to his right with an empty net ahead.

Still, it's easy from up here, of course, and with Cousin alongside him soon, Fagan will get the support he needs both in terms of bodily presence up front and as a target for the midfield's through balls and crosses. He won't have to do it all on his own but while he is, the fist he is making of it is more than good enough. Considering how maligned he has been over the years, by this author and others, it's refreshing to be able to say that Fagan is now a bonafide Premier League footballer who is doing his Premier League team proud.