Tim Iroegbunam admits he couldn’t believe the amount of space he was afforded inside the Ipswich Town half as he galloped forward before slotting in Hull City‘s equaliser against Ipswich Town.
His first Premier League goal on his 66th appearance in England’s top flight dragged City level just before the hour, before Oli McBurnie’s pinpoint free-kick turned the game on its head after the hosts were a goal down at the break following an awful opening half in East Yorkshire.
Julio Enciso levelled shortly after to ensure it finished 2-2 with City remaining unbeaten at the MKM Stadium in the early weeks of the new campaign.
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Ipswich’s defence parted like the Red Sea to allow the former Everton midfielder to latch onto McBurnie’s sweeping pass, with Dara O’Shea and goalkeeper Christian Walton allowing Iroegbunam to close in on goal before stroking into the net unchallenged.
“It was a weird one because I just saw loads of space to run into, kept dribbling and got so close to the goal where I thought I just had to shoot,” the midfielder told Hull Live.
“I wasn’t looking to shoot. I was looking to cross or pass, but it was almost like he was forcing me to shoot, as if he wanted me to shoot. No one came and engaged me, so I thought, ‘Alright, I have to shoot it now’, and it went in. It felt amazing. I scored in the Championship a few years ago. That was amazing, but this was a different feeling.”
Florentino Luis’ 22nd-minute opener gave Town a deserved lead at the break, but boss Sergej Jakirovic changed to a 4-3-3 formation and brought Matt Crooks on to play in the number 10 role behind McBurnie, and it made a big difference. The City chief also delivered a blunt message to his players at the break, demanding an improvement, which he got.
“The first half wasn’t a great performance from us, but in the second half, we came out and showed ourselves,” Iroegbunam continued. “He (Jakirovic) was saying, ‘ It’s happened now’; stay calm. We changed formation. It was more just how he wanted us to go about it in the second half in that new formation.
“With a number 10, it helped us get pressure on the ball in areas we weren’t able to in the first half, and he (Matt Crooks) can run for ages; he’s a big presence, and he helped us get up to the ball, brought loads of energy and helped change the momentum of the game.”
Though the Tigers haven’t won since the end of August, they remain unbeaten at home and have moved into 11 points from their opening nine games.
“We always say before the games that we want this place to be frightening for other teams to come. We want to make it a battle for them, and I feel that knowing we still haven’t lost is great,” he added.
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