Hull City boss wants unprecedented EFL ruling after Southampton Spygate scandal
Middlesbrough will face Hull City in the Championship play-off final at Wembley on Saturday.
Hull City manager Sergej Jakirovic has spoken candidly about how the Spygate saga has disrupted his side's preparations for the Championship play-off final. Middlesbrough will take on the Tigers at Wembley Stadium on Saturday after Southampton were thrown out of the fixture for spying.
The Saints were expelled from the final following a thorough investigation by the EFL's independent disciplinary panel, with the ruling being upheld on Wednesday after the Saints lodged an appeal. Consequently, Boro will now line up against Hull in this weekend's showpiece, with the victors earning promotion to the Premier League.
Jakirovic addressed the media on Thursday ahead of the final, voicing his concerns over the limited time he and his squad have had to prepare for Boro.
"For sure it is a relief because since Tuesday we now know who we are playing," he said.
"We prepared for seven days to play Southampton because they won the final. Maybe it is a bit short (the build-up for Boro), but we have played them twice and we know them and they know us."
Jakirovic also quipped that Hull ought to be handed automatic promotion to the Premier League rather than having to contest the play-off final against Boro, before shedding further light on the club's hasty preparations for Saturday's grand occasion.
"It's not up to me what happens. The best idea is to automatically promote Hull," Jakirovic joked.
He added: "It is not a question for me, what would be the best scenario. Our focus was on Southampton, so from Tuesday it changed and that means it's been short.
"But we had one good session tactically and tomorrow we will decide who is in the first XI and hopefully we have a good performance.
"The players are fully focused on the final. It is a 50/50 game no matter who is the opponent."
The Hull manager was relieved the final had not been pushed back to a later date, with Tuesday, May 26 having been mooted as a possible alternative.
The confirmed kick-off was ultimately set for 3.30pm this Saturday, scheduled ahead of the Premier League's final day on Sunday, as well as the League One and League Two play-off finals.
"I'm very happy the game is Saturday," Jakirovic admitted. "My first question was will they postpone, because 12 days until the final is already too long. They have to change this.
"Two times play in three days and then 12 days off, they can change this. For two days we had celebrations as a team, then we trained, had a weekend off and since Monday it has been a normal week.
"We will see Saturday about how well we have prepared. We want to show the football we have played this season."
Turning his attention to Boro's squad, the Hull chief expressed a degree of understanding, remarking: "It is hard because you switch off and then you must switch on. It is not easy to prepare like that for this type of game."
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