With a bit of a lull between World Cup games, it’s time for a spot of domestic content – and the start of our Promoted series!
Hull City became the third and final team to be promoted to the Premier League in May, when they beat Middlesbrough 1-0 in the Championship play-off final.
They have since been installed as the favourites to go straight back down, so Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers are naturally eyeing them up as potential whipping boys.
But is that perception fair, or could they perhaps follow in the footsteps of Sunderland and Leeds United, who both stayed up in 2025/26 after their promotions?
In this three-part series focused on the Tigers, we’ll have in-depth examinations of their defence and attack. We start, however, with a detailed look at manager Sergej Jakirovic.
To provide a fan’s perspective, we’ve included insights from Hull fan Danny MacDonald.
Data comes from StatsBomb, FBref, Fotmob and WhoScored.
WHAT TACTICS DO HULL PLAY UNDER JAKIROVIC?
Jakirovic mostly used a 4-3-3 formation in the Championship last season, but often mixed up Hull’s approach.
For example, in the second leg of the play-off semi-finals at Millwall, they moved to a back three with wing-backs, a system they successfully used again in the final. Given its impact, it’s an approach which could serve them well next season.
This is how Hull lined up for that 1-0 victory over Middlesbrough at Wembley (via Transfermarkt).
“Jakirovic uses either a 4-3-3 or 5-4-1 formation, often depending on the strengths of the opposition. He switched to a 5-4-1 for the second leg of the play-off semi-final (a 2-0 away win at Millwall) and the final, with the opposition having very few (if any) big chances. I would be surprised if he moves away from that 5-4-1 at least for the start of the 2026/27 season.
“But Jakirovic is a very flexible manager. We’ve had several managers in our recent history who have a set tactic and would not deviate from this, regardless of what was happening (Liam Rosenior, cough cough). Jakirovic will change things up if they’re not going well and has no qualms in altering formation between games.” – Danny
WHAT STYLE OF FOOTBALL DOES JAKIROVIC FAVOUR?
In terms of Jakirovic’s style of play, he demands a fast, energetic approach, with quick transitions and a high press.
“As soon as possible I want to get into the opponents’ half and put them under pressure. Modern football is all about transitions. When we get the ball, a fast transition to attack. If we lose it, react quickly. Maybe a foul but we need to stop them. Our strength is going forward so in every training session we want to put in their mind that the goal is in front of them. With the players we’ve got we want numbers in the box. It will never be pass, pass, pass for the sake of it.” – Sergej Jakirovic
If that sounds familiar, it’s because Jakirovic has modelled his philosophy on former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
“I have been following him since Mainz. He is gegenpressing, and I try to put this style of football into my teams. Especially the reaction after losing the ball.” – Sergej Jakirovic on Jurgen Klopp, via The Athletic
POSSESSION
Hull are really comfortable without the ball.
They ranked 19th for possession in the Championship last season, but the data showed their proficiency on the counter-attack, with 56 shots from such situations, the second-most of any team.
The underlying numbers further underscored their direct approach, averaging 25.2 accurate long passes per game, behind only Wrexham and Portsmouth.
| Hull in 2025/26 | Rank v other Championship clubs | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 45.7% | 19th |
| Pass completion rate | 74.1% | 20th |
| Accurate short passes per game | 239.5 | 19th |
| Accurate long passes per game | 25.2 | 3rd |
| Counter attack shots | 56 | 2nd |
Simply put, Hull’s objective is to launch quick counter-attacks before the opposition can organise themselves.
“Jakirovic will likely adopt an approach of having -30% possession and hurting teams on transition. Last season, we were one of the best transition teams in the Championship, ranking second for fast breaks and fast break goals. We ranked 11th for turnovers, but second for turnovers leading to goals.” – Danny
GOALSCORING
Hull scored 70 goals en route to finishing sixth, a decent return. Their numbers showed how efficient they were.
Jakirovic’s men took just 515 shots, the fifth-fewest of any team. According to StatsBomb, they had a non-penalty xG of 55.04!
| Hull in 2025/26 | Rank v other Championship clubs | |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | 70 | 5th |
| Expected goals (xG) | 68.83 | 8th |
| Shots | 515 | 20th |
However, no team generated a higher xG per shot (0.13), so like Brentford, they are clearly going for quality over quantity. Just three of their 70 goals were scored from outside the box, too.
“Jakirovic’s teams often enjoy containing sides and being incredibly efficient on the break, making the most of the chances we get. Last season, this resulted in a high conversion rate for our attackers, which, if translated into the Premier League, will be good for bonus when they do score.” – Danny
DEFENDING
But Hull were one of the leakiest teams in the Championship, with only three sides conceding more.
In fact, based on xG, they should have conceded around 17 more goals!
| Hull in 2025/26 | Rank v other Championship clubs | |
|---|---|---|
| Goals conceded | 66 | 21st |
| Clean sheets | 11 | =13th |
| Shots conceded per game | 14.8 | 22nd |
| Expected goals conceded (xGC) | 82.69 | 23rd |
On a positive note, Hull did at least manage to keep clean sheets in all three of their play-off games.
They also took the lead in 17 matches last season, so game state should be factored in. That said, they will undoubtedly need to improve their defensive solidity if they want to survive in the top-flight.
DOES JAKIROVIC LIKE A SETTLED SIDE OR WILL HE ROTATE?
| Player | Primary position in 2025/26 | Starts (sub apps) |
|---|---|---|
| Ivor Pandur* | GK | 45 |
| John Egan | CB | 39 (3) |
| Lewie Coyle | RB | 37 (2) |
| Charlie Hughes | CB | 36 (2) |
| Regan Slater | CM | 35 (7) |
| Joe Gelhardt* | AM/RW | 35 (4) |
| Oli McBurnie | CF | 32 (5) |
| Ryan Giles | LB | 30 (2) |
| Matt Crooks | CM | 28 (3) |
| Kyle Joseph | LW | 27 (17) |
| Amir Hadziahmetovic* | CM | 26 (11) |
| Liam Millar | LW | 22 (11) |
| Semi Ajayi | CB | 18 (4) |
| Cody Drameh | RB | 16 (6) |
| John Lundstram* | CM | 16 (13) |
| Bachir Belloumi | RW | 10 (12) |
| Joel Ndala* | LW | 10 (7) |
| Akin Femewo* | LB | 7 (8) |
| Darko Gyabi | AM | 6 (14) |
| Paddy McNair | CB | 6 (6) |
| Babajide Akintola | RW | 5 (15) |
| Enis Destan | CF | 4 (14) |
| Lewis Koumas* | LW | 4 (13) |
| Kasey Palmer | AM | 3 (6) |
| Yu Hirakawa | LW | 2 (5) |
| Kieran Dowell | AM | 1 (12) |
| Cathal McCarthy | CB | 1 (5) |
| Matty Jacob | LB | 1 (4) |
| Toby Collyer* | CM | 1 (4) |
| Abu Kamara | RW | 1 (1) |
| Elliot Matazo | CM | 1 |
| Dillon Phillips | GK | 1 |
| Nathan Tinsdale* | LW | 0 (1) |
| Brandon Williams* | CB | 0 (1) |
The Hull boss called upon 34 players last season, the most of the promoted trio. Injuries played a key part in that, however.
“I would say Jakirovic likes to rotate on the fringes of the team, but we had so many injuries last season that I can’t give a definitive answer. Often we had to rely on playing players half-fit because of our bad luck with injuries.” – Danny
Six of Hull’s squad made 35 starts or more, including the goalkeeper, both centre-backs and Regan Slater in central midfield.
HOW DOES JAKIROVIC HANDLE THE PRESS – AND WILL HE GIVE US HONEST TEAM NEWS?
A likeable character, it sounds like Jakirovic will be upfront in his weekly press conferences.
“Jakirovic is probably the most open and to the point manager we’ve had at Hull. He’s incredibly popular both with the players and the fans, with his honesty (which extends into providing injury news) and humour.” – Danny
WHERE MIGHT JAKIROVIC STRENGTHEN IN THE SUMMER AND WHICH PLAYERS ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING THEIR PLACE?
Hull have just been promoted under a transfer embargo, so they clearly need reinforcements. Expect a busy summer in the transfer market, then.
“We expect that the skeleton of the 12 main players who performed this season will remain, which means that we need 12 to 15 reinforcements.” – Sergej Jakirovic
Correspondent Danny believes every position needs upgrading, with only Charlie Hughes and Oli McBurnie completely assured of starts in next month’s opener at Old Trafford.
“Every area of the team will need upgrading, whether it be starting players or the players we have on the bench.
“Of the team that started in the play-off final, I’d say that only Charlie Hughes and Oli McBurnie are looking nailed-on to start in Gameweek 1. It wouldn’t surprise me if Ryan Giles, Lewie Coyle and Regan Slater started as well, although I would expect Giles and Coyle to be facing immense competition from new signings at full-back.
“A key point to make here is that the Hull team from last season will be very much changed as we head into 2026/27. The expectation is that we will try to adopt the ‘Sunderland approach’, with a smattering of two or three experienced, top-level players, complimenting a hard-working, young side.” – Danny
