Jakirovic Named Barclays Manager of the Month for Hull City

Sergej Jakirovic has turned Hull City’s Premier League return into a statement, and the league has taken notice.

The 49-year-old has been named Barclays Manager of the Month for August after guiding the newly promoted Tigers to two wins from two, a perfect opening that has jolted the top flight and rewritten a slice of the club’s history.

This is rare air for a Hull manager. Not since Mike Phelan in August 2016 has anyone from the club touched the award, and Jakirovic becomes only the third Tigers boss ever to claim it, following Phil Brown’s recognition back in September 2008. His success also carries a wider significance: he is the first Bosnian to win the prize, extending the list of nationalities honoured in the Premier League to 21.

Hull did not sneak back into the big time. They arrived with noise. Fresh from promotion via the Championship playoffs last season, Jakirovic has refused to treat this campaign as a survival exercise. His team have attacked the division from the first whistle.

On the opening weekend of the 2026/27 season, Hull stunned Manchester United with a controlled, clinical 2-0 victory that felt like more than an upset. It was a declaration that they intend to belong here. Organisation without fear, discipline with ambition – Jakirovic’s fingerprints were all over it.

Any suggestion that result was a one-off faded quickly. Next came a tense, scrappy meeting with fellow promoted side Coventry City, the kind of fixture that often exposes newly arrived clubs. Hull did not blink. They dug in, stayed patient and found a late winner to edge a tight contest, the sort of moment that turns a good start into genuine momentum.

Two games, two wins, and a manager who has moved from playoff hero to Premier League headline in the space of a fortnight. The award is confirmation of what Hull supporters can already feel: under Jakirovic, this is not just a return to the top flight. It is an opportunity to redraw the club’s ceiling.