‘I am a fighter’ - how Jakirovic is taking on the Premier League

No visitor can escape the fact that Hull City are back. Lampposts are adorned with the simple but telling declaration in amber that ‘We are Premier League.’ There are flags in windows with messages such as ‘Dare to Dream.’ Sergej Jakirovic made it happen.

"I am very proud of this achievement and the people are proud," he tells Sky Sports. "It is not easy to get promotion and play in the Premier League. We see how difficult it is. There will be ups and downs, this is normal. But we showed already that we can compete."

Spend any time at all with the 49-year-old Jakirovic, an imposing but engaging figure, and it is easy to appreciate his ability to inspire and to galvanise. He is speaking to Sky Sports in the aftermath of losing to Fulham but he exudes confidence, calm and steely defiance.

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"One defeat and now we will surrender here? We will give up? No. It is about trying to improve." Hull have certainly done that on his watch. They go into the weekend in the top half of the Premier League table, already building on that unlikely Wembley win in May.

It was Hull's fourth promotion to the Premier League, but the previous one had come a decade ago and the club have been down to League One and back since then. In its own way, it was the most unexpected given that Hull finished down in 21st the year before.

Jakirovic arrived with an esoteric reputation, forged by winning the title in Bosnia with Zrinjski Mostar and a double in Croatia with Dinamo Zagreb. But it is the job that he did when in Turkey with Kayserispor in 2025 that feels the most relevant experience now.

He took over with that team in the bottom three in January but produced top-four form from then until the end of the season to lift the struggling side out of the bottom six. In other words, Jakirovic has demonstrated that he can win titles and keep his teams up.

"I do not know too many coaches who start like I do in the academy and then, step by step, come here. It is a big privilege and I am very proud of this journey. It is not easy to get the chance here, especially from my country. But you have to use your opportunity."

And use that underdog spirit that meshes so well in a city like Hull, perhaps? "In my nature, I am a fighter and I will never surrender. No matter who is the opponent, we will have our chances. We just have to fight, to stick together, to stick to the tactical plan."

Hull's tactics have confounded a number of teams already this season, starting with that seismic 2-0 win over Manchester United on the opening weekend. They won at Coventry too and have since drawn games against Aston Villa, Chelsea and Everton.

"We decided to play one system that brings us stability." That 5-4-1 formation out of possession is designed to make them hard to break down but the plan is to counter-attack quickly. No team in the Premier League is moving the ball quicker up the pitch.

It is not just a low block. Hull do harry and press. And those counter-attacks require ambition. "We play much braver with the ball, courage, good movements." The possession numbers are not high but that is not new. "We did not have this in the Championship."

Jakirovic explains: "It is always around 30 to 35 percent which is completely normal for me because I watch other games and there are better teams with more experience that also have that much possession. It is not about possession, it is what you do with it."

As he points out, "it is about how you can create chances and make it difficult for the opposition" but there is still an expectation that the team will evolve. "We have signed some players who very good, especially on the ball. But they have had injury problems."

There is the example of 31-year-old midfielder Hidemasa Morita, signed from Sporting. "Morita joined us in the middle of July and it is now October and he has had maybe 10 to 12 group sessions so far. Morita is a very good player but it is about match fitness."

It is not just him. Ilyas Ansah, a 6'4" striker, was a major signing from the Bundesliga but is yet to get on the pitch. Robinio Vaz, on loan from Roma, made four substitute appearances in the Premier League but he is now out. Matt Targett has a twisted ankle.

"We have a spine from last season," Jakirovic explains. The aim was to "add more quality players" and there is a belief that they have done that. "Then injuries happen and you are again at the beginning, so we will see." Only Tottenham Hotspur have more players out.

"These new signings will add to the group," says Jakirovic. We signed these players because they have quality. Some have big potential, they are very young. Every training session is an experience for them. It is an opportunity to grow. I am trying to build this team."

The injury list is just another headache for Jakirovic in a season that has already taken a bizarre turn, with the manager even having to address the squad after two players managed to flip their cars on the narrow road leading away from the club's training ground.

It serves to emphasise the all-encompassing role of the football manager. A tactician, they called him the professor in Croatia. "We have a lot of clips. Almost every action, you find something. It is about small details." But this job demands man-management too.

"It is about motivation, it is about psychology. This is my job. We do everything to lift the team." But who lifts him? "I am always positive and optimistic. I love my job." A survivor of the Balkan Wars as a teenager, one cannot help but wonder if it provides perspective.

"Football is my life. But, at the end of the day, it is just sport. It is disappointing sometimes but we have to enjoy every game because it is a special privilege to play in the Premier League." That said, he did not enjoy what he saw last time out away to Fulham.

"It is about the way we lost this game. We did not show anything. We did not even have a shot on target." He is demanding more against Brentford on Sunday. "It is about running, it is about duels, being aggressive, passing, receiving, body positions, better decisions."

He adds: "My team is giving everything on the pitch because when you look after the game at the GPS, it is very good in terms of running, high-intensity sprinting. They are giving everything but this is still football. We have to play much better with the ball."

If they can do that, it might be Jakirovic's greatest feat yet. He already has tattoos of his past title wins on his shoulders. "These are very good memories for me." He claims that keeping Hull up would not quite warrant a new one, they are reserved for the trophies.

But staying in the Premier League would be some achievement. "We know our target." Can they do it? They have the backing. "The fans are incredible." They might just have the manager too. Not that he feels the pressure. "What is pressure? Like I said, it is just sport."

Watch Hull vs Brentford live on Sky Sports Golf this Sunday from 12.30pm; kick-off 2pm