Mo Belloumi was one of Hull City’s most threatening players on Saturday at Sheffield United
Mohamed Belloumi has started two games since returning from his latest injury(Image: Anna Gowthorpe/Shutterstock)
Hull City must continue to manage Mo Belloumi’s minutes following the injuries he has struggled with, Sergej Jakirovic says.
Belloumi ruptured his ACL last season and missed the first few weeks of this campaign because of that as he came to the end of a long and arduous rehabilitation period. He made a return to action in August but picked up a hamstring injury on his first start, keeping him out for another two months.
Another return came in November, but the injury he picked up on Boxing Day against Sheffield Wednesday ruled him out for another two and half months.
Belloumi did eventually come back against Wrexham last month and while he has played in every game since, Saturday was just his second start.
And, as they strive to avoid another setback, the Tigers will continue to monitor his workload going forward.
“We are trying to manage his minutes and this is the main plan for us because he had a very bad experience in the past,” Jakirovic told the press on Saturday after the loss at Bramall Lane. “I think he played a very good game today.
“Our plan was 70 minutes and now we have all week, so it’s good. Also, he will have a training session.
“He is trying very hard and we know what Mo Belloumi is capable of. He’s very dangerous with the ball, one v one and in counter attacks as well. This is good for us in this stage of the Championship.”
Belloumi’s performance was undoubtedly a positive for City, as was Oli McBurnie scoring his first goal in nine games as he drilled the Tigers ahead in South Yorkshire with just five minutes on the clock.
“Like I said before, we have to create chances for Oli McBurnie and then he will put them in the net,” Jakirovic said on his striker. “That was still our problem because he wasn’t getting a lot of balls or chances.
“He put a lot of energy there always. It’s not easy for him because a lot of the time they miss fouls him as well. If you look at the opposite team, it’s always little touch, foul.
“For Oli McBurnie, sometimes I see him like rugby player, they throw him left and right without any foul.
“When you watch the game again in peace, you see.”