Sergej Jakirovic admits Hull City have ‘big problems’ after massive defeat to Bristol City

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A strong start to the season is descending into a disappointing one for Hull City, with a 4-2 hammering at the hands of Bristol City this weekend leaving Sergej Jakirovic unhappy with his side.

After a turbulent summer that saw Hull City hit with transfer restrictions due to financial issues, the Tigers shocked everyone by starting the season strong.

A draw against Coventry City and a narrow victory over Oxford United had neutrals doubting their early-season Championship predictions and praising Sergej Jakirovic for the way he was setting up his team.

Now, though, after a big defeat at home to Blackburn last weekend and another heavy loss on the road against Bristol City this weekend, doubts are creeping in.

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Sergej Jakirovic’s honest post-match comments after Hull City lose to Bristol City

Hull even took the lead very early on at Ashton Gate thanks to a goal from Joe Gelhardt, but the home side turned on the style to score three first-half goals and turn the game on its head. A goal from Max Bird with just over ten minutes to go wrapped up the tie, before Kyle Joseph added a consolation for Hull in injury time.

Discussing the game and the performance he witnessed, Jakirovic admitted his side made too many mistakes, and the Hull City manager is certainly not happy with the defending on show.

He said: “It was an excellent game, but only for the spectator. We entered well and took the lead. But after, in possession, on the ball, we couldn’t have good possession and made a lot of mistakes. They punished almost all of our mistakes.

“At half-time we agreed that we must play with better energy and make better decisions on the ball. I was satisfied with 30 minutes of the second half; I think we had three or four very good chances on goal. We had the Oli McBurnie header, that [Radek] Vitec saved very well. And then they scored again.

“It was an easy goal. For me, we have big problems in defending one against one and two against two. It is soft, this is very soft, and we need to improve that.”

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A bad Hull City performance, or a top display from Bristol City?

Was this a case of Hull being bad or Bristol City being good? Well, the latter is certainly true.

The Robins had more possession overall with 56% to Hull’s 44%, but that’s to be expected given they were playing at home.

Meanwhile, Bristol also dominated when it comes to xG, registering 3.49 to Hull’s 2.60, and they also had six big chances and 29 shots in total, compared to five and 20 for Hull. However, it is Hull who registered more on target (nine to Bristol City’s five).

It is worth noting Bristol City’s goalkeeper, Vitek, made seven saves while Ivor Pandur only made one. Suffice it to say, Hull definitely had their chances to change the game in their favour, but were not clinical enough on the day.