The Tigers dropped two more points against the mid-table Blues
Barry Cooper Hull City correspondent
18:10, 18 Apr 2026
Hull City manager Sergej Jakirovic during the game with Birmingham City(Image: Lee Keuneke/PA Wire/PA Images)
Hull City head coach Sergej Jakirovic admits his side were well below par in the second half of their 1-1 draw against Birmingham City at the MKM Stadium.
After a low-key start, City took the lead 24 minutes in when Joe Gelhardt latched onto a loose ball inside the box and fired across James Beadle via a deflection.
Despite going in front, the hosts laboured in the second half and allowed the visitors to dictate play, and though they carried little threat for the most part, a thunderous effort from Tomoki Iwata 13 minutes from time earned the away side a deserved point.
Semi Ajayi flashed a glorious opening wide in the closing stages, which was their best chance of a disappointing second half.
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City are now just two points above the chasing pack, after both Wrexham and Derby County claimed home wins, ahead of Tuesday night’s clash against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.
“I think that we didn’t play our best game today,” Jakirovic told Hull Live. “Since the start, we had a lot of problems in the first 20 minutes with second balls; they had more control there, but after that, we started to do something. We scored a nice goal through Joffo (Gelhardt).
“We had some promising attacks through (Mo) Belloumi, especially. We didn’t find a good pass there or an extra players in the box.
“At half-time, we tried to increase the duels and be successful on second balls. I didn’t feel any threat there, of course they had more possession, but in the end, we had three big chances.
“Before their goal, we lost a very cheap ball, and then we didn’t run back to cover these players, Iwata, who scored a fantastic goal.
“After this, we start to push more to try to find a way to get the second goal. We had some situations that unfortunately we didn’t score, and in the end, I can say it was a fair result today, what I saw from my spot.”
Jakirovic felt his side waited for things to happen in the second period, rather than forcing the issue and trying to get the second goal.
“You have to search for the ball, to play under pressure, to try to have more possession and also to be more brave with the ball.
“You are not playing against robots. I know Birmingham, they have nothing to lose, so I know that it’s easy to play, and also you know you need a win because everything is very tight, but this is football in the end, and now we have three games to go.”
It’s now just one win in seven for the Tigers, who have seemingly hit the wall in recent weeks, and Jakirovic says his side knows they need wins.
“We will try to win the points, but if you can’t win the game, then it’s very difficult,” added the Croatian.
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