Stuart Rayner
Published16th Jul 2026, 07:30 BST
From the chairman of any other club fresh into world football's best and most competitive league, it is a comment that would hardly raise an eye, but from someone as unashamedly ambitious as Hull's Turkish owner, it just shows the scale of the task facing them.
When Ilicali first bought Hull in January 2022, inheriting a team embroiled in a Championship relegation battle and instantly challenging them to gatecrash that year's play-offs, such realism would have been anathema to him, but he says he joins the Premier League having sat a full university course in English football and now ready to move onto his masters.
Leeds United and Sunderland showed the way last season, ending two consecutive years of he sides going up from the Championship going straight back down. The Black Cats even qualified for the Europa League.
MAGICM MOMENT: Hull City's Turkish owner Acun Ilicali celebrates with the trophy after seeing his team beat Middlesbrough in the Championship play-off final at Wembley in May. Picture: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images.placeholder image
MAGICM MOMENT: Hull City's Turkish owner Acun Ilicali celebrates with the trophy after seeing his team beat Middlesbrough in the Championship play-off final at Wembley in May. Picture: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images.
But that does not stop Ilicali seeing finishing one place above the dotted line next May as a "big success". Then he will start dreaming of more.
"Maybe not 20 years ago, but now, actually, it is right," he admits. "Football has completely changed in the world, and also in England, the mathematics has completely changed.
"Now, three teams promoted, three of them relegated (the next season), three teams promoted, two of them relegated.
"So, what does it mean? It's a huge budget difference now, because of the good conditions (strength) of the Premier League.
HIGH TIMES: Hull City's Lewis Coyle lifts the trophy after winning promotion to the Premier League following the Championship play-off final win against Middlesbrough at Wembley. Picture: Adam Davy/PAplaceholder image
HIGH TIMES: Hull City's Lewis Coyle lifts the trophy after winning promotion to the Premier League following the Championship play-off final win against Middlesbrough at Wembley. Picture: Adam Davy/PA
"Now, when you come (into the division) new, the other teams have gone far, so you are trying to catch them. It's not easy.
"So I think being 17th is a fantastic result."
Now Leeds are talking in terms of the second season being just as difficult as the first, but that sort of patience is not in Ilicali's nature.
"We've been promoted inside four years (of ownership) which is, I think, a very big success," he comments. "The day I bought the club, we were 20-something in the (Championship), now we are in the Premier League. This is a big success.
MAIN MAN: Hull City' head coach Sergej Jakirovic. Picture: Tony Johnson.placeholder image
MAIN MAN: Hull City' head coach Sergej Jakirovic. Picture: Tony Johnson.
"But to stay in the league will be a big success.
"If we can stay (up in the) first year, after that we have a big chance to go to higher places."
Chris Wilder admitted when Sheffield United won promotion in 2019, they recruited new players – one of whom, Oli McBurnie, is now at Hull – with one eye on them playing in the Championship if the Blades were relegated, and such thinking has been evident from clubs such as Ipswich Town and Southampton in recent years. That is one compromise Ilicali is unwilling to make.
"No, no, no," he insists. "Not like that.
"This is another idea, which I respect. Our idea is completely to stay in the Premier League and we want to just give our coach a team so that he can get what is in his mind.
"Plus, of course, a team that all our fans will be proud of. So, the recruitment is slow now but under control.
"The World Cup is one of the reasons but big transfers are usually starting in August because when the new guy comes, now another guy is free.
"Everyone (selling a player) asks for money that they will never ask for two weeks, three weeks later. So as not to lose some players, you can spend more money because you don't want to risk losing them.
"It is completely the same as playing chess. Any wrong moment can be checkmate."
Complicating matters for Hull this summer was the surprise departure of sporting director Jared Dublin, but Ilicali is confident the machine is sophisticated enough to carry on without him, with Okan Ozkan expected to be his replacement.
"Our fans only see one person or two people as the face of this recruitment but there are so many people working behind, so many football minds behind," stresses Ilicali. "I want all our fans to be very calm about this situation because the system is working.
"If this team is based on one person, that is the time we are dead. I hope it never happens. One person can go, two people can go, it will never change the system.
"Okan will adapt to the system and give more options to us.
"I worked with him for one year in Fenerbahce (when Ilicali was the vice-president).
"At 2am you call Okan, we can discuss every detail. I called him 2.30am, he was awake. I called him 9am, he was awake.
"I know he will answer the phone after three rings at most, usually two. I'm not bringing somebody that is a risk or I don't know.
"I'm experienced now. In my first year, I made more mistakes. Now, in the fourth year, I know every parameter is different.
"If we were in the Championship, we would make four or five transfers, now we will make 14.
"It is my fifth year now (as owner), so it's just like I've graduated from university. University courses are four years in Turkey.
"I've finished university, I'm going now to the Premier League to do my masters."