Last summer’s deadline day arrival was left out of the Tigers’ squad on Saturday
Hull City head coach Sergej Jakirovic says he does not know what the future holds for midfielder Kasey Palmer after he was left out of the squad for Saturday’s 1-0 win over Sheffield United.
Jakirovic revealed Palmer was not ready to be involved against the Blades after being left out of the squad initially when the players were made aware of the matchday 18 on Friday, having been hauled off at half-time of Tuesday’s 2-2 draw with Preston North End.
Striker Kyle Joseph pulled out of the game on Saturday morning through illness, which meant City went into the contest against the Blades with only eight substitutes named instead of the usual nine.
The City head coach appeared distinctly unimpressed with the situation and demanded that Palmer give everything for the club that pays his wages.
“He (Palmer) was not ready for this game, so it was my decision and he will not be on the bench,” the Croatian told Hull Live when asked why the 28-year-old was left out of the squad altogether.
“Not ready. Not easy. What I said, not ready. Not mentally ready. We have a lot of players, so I mean, at least I can give you a chance. You need to show your quality on the pitch. No one is above the club for me. I have no problems with that.”
Palmer has found regular minutes hard to come by this season, but was handed a rare start in midweek, though, along with the rest of his colleagues, he struggled in the first half and was taken off, along with Amir Hadziahmetovic and Cody Drameh, before the Tigers mounted a stirring second-half comeback.
Jakirovic was noncommittal about whether Palmer has any way back into his plans, putting the ball firmly in the court of the experienced playmaker.
“It’s not about me,” Jakirovic said when asked if there was any way back for the former Chelsea youngster. “He’s a professional player, we pay him, so he needs to give everything for this club and this team.”
The former Coventry City performer, who joined the Tigers on deadline day last summer, is now set to head off on international duty with Jamaica for crucial World Cup qualifiers against Curacao and Bermuda, but Jakirovic is unsure if the two weeks away will be a chance to have some space. “Maybe, I don’t know,” he continued. “I hope they all will play something – Semi (Ajayi) and Liam (Millar), and they will return healthy.”
Ajayi and Millar will also jet off on international duty with Nigeria and Canada, respectively, despite only just returning from major injuries and the Tigers head coach will be nervously watching in the hope they return unscathed in time for the visit to Birmingham City.
“I’m OK because you cannot stop them. I know that next year is the World Cup, so when it’s the World Cup, everyone is buzzing. I hope he (Ajayi) will play something there because he needs it, and Liam as well. Liam is now OK, almost 85 minutes (played in the last two games). He played two games, so it’s good.”
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