The Tigers continue to be impacted by a flurry of injuries as Sergej Jakirovic’s men battle hard for a spot in the Championship play-off positions
Sergej Jakirovic joked that Hull City need a squad of 50 players to accommodate the ongoing injury troubles engulfing the club, threatening to hamper their progress.
Though City enjoyed a terrific week with seven points from nine with wins at Birmingham City and over Leicester City, before being held by Charlton Athletic on Saturday, they’ve been losing key players at an alarming rate.
Oli McBurnie, Matt Crooks, David Akintola, Akin Famewo and Liam Millar have all picked up problems in the past week, joining the likes of John Lundstram, Mo Belloumi and Kasey Palmer on the sidelines.
It’s hoped Crooks’ initial prognosis isn’t as bad as first thought, and that he will at least be able to play on until the international break and possibly beyond.
City are now in the midst of a clear week before heading to Norwich City on Friday afternoon for Saturday’s early kick-off, followed by a trip to Derby County and then a home clash with Portsmouth before the next break.
The Tigers trained at the MKM Stadium on Monday in front of more than 2,000 fans, and it highlighted just how much Jakirovic is getting down to the bare bones.
“It’s important, and now we have time to recover, but my biggest concern is that we are losing one or two players after every game. This is the biggest problem, and maybe we need 50 players in the squad,” the Croatian told Hull Live.
“I don’t know, because this is unbelievable. We will see who will be ready for this, not just Norwich, but the three games in a row again in seven days.
“I think it’s similar to last season (lots of injuries). I think like this, but this is such a difficult league; this is why I spoke with you about how referees need to protect the players, because in some duels, it’s not normal.
“Some duels they whistle foul and then stop because it’s big intensity. They (Charlton) play like it’s the last day of the world, yeah, yeah.”
On McBurnie, it’s unlikely he’ll be in the squad at Carrow Road, and Jakirovic says he’ll continue to be assessed with the hope he could be involved at Pride Park, or against Pompey.
“If you ask Oli, he’s ready to play, but he’s not with us. He doesn’t train with the group, he’s in recovery, so we will see next week (for Norwich).”
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