The Tigers now pause their promotion bid and focus on FA Cup glory
Barry Cooper Hull City correspondent
09:00, 10 Feb 2026
Sergej Jakirovic's focus is now on Friday night's meeting with Chelsea
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Sergej Jakirovic's focus is now on Friday night's meeting with Chelsea(Image: PA Wire/PA Images)
Sergej Jakirovic believes that the FA Cup game against Chelsea on Friday night presents his side with a welcome opportunity to take a well-earned breather from the quest for Championship points.
City are firmly entrenched in the promotion race but have missed two big opportunities in the past two games to really put pressure on the top two.
The Tigers were held to a 0-0 draw against Watford last Tuesday evening before losing 3-2 to Bristol City on Saturday, as their familiar home struggles returned.
Attention now turns to the FA Cup game against Chelsea, with City not back in the Championship action until Saturday week when they host QPR and then Derby County in quick succession.
The visit of the Blues will also give Jakirovic the chance to mix things up with his team, given his starting XI at the weekend was a mix of players like Charlie Hughes, Lewie Coyle, Regan Slater and Oli McBurnie, all of whom have played a lot in recent weeks, along with players coming back from injury or ones that haven't played much.
"I think yes," the Croatian said when asked if it was time for a reset. "The recovery (time) is good. Maybe those players who missed some weeks because of injury will have some more time for (training) sessions.
"What can I say about Chelsea? Chelsea is Chelsea. We will prepare everything. Maybe we will use this game to give some minutes to those players who need minutes, we will see. We must be smart in this game. We will be in a low block, maybe we can play with a shovel, I don't know. It will be very interesting because they are very good and Liam (Rosenior) has a very wide roster. They played on Saturday (won 3-1 at Wolves), and on Tuesday again (at home to Leeds), so we will see who will play against us."
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Paddy McNair made his first start for City while Toby Collyer came off the bench in the closing stages against the Robins, but neither have played much in recent weeks and will be pushing for more minutes under the lights on Friday evening.
"I put Paddy in because it's a chance for him to play. Also, Toby Collyer, so we can see where they are right now,” explained Jakirovic. “Now I have info, so it's easier for me to pick the right players in the next games.
"Some players like Lewie Coyle, Charlie Hughes, they played every game and they are struggling, so they are not 100 per cent. Regan Slater plays every game, 90 minutes. It's not easy every three games with good energy, with a good day that you are perfect. It's not easy.
"We see now with Lunny (John Lundstram), how in some situations, he is struggling because he was out for three months, but we need him. On Saturday, I spared Amir (Hadziahmetovic), because he also sometimes needs a break, but now we have options, but I must now choose the right one."
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