How Oli McBurnie is helping Hull City's new arrivals feel at home

The Tigers signed Paddy McNair, Kieran Dowell, James Debayo, Lewis Koumas, Toby Collyer (currently out injured) and Yu Hirakawa in the mid-season transfer window, all of whom have played in England before, but still with a new area and new team-mates to adapt to.

Many foreign players in particular have spoken in the past about captain Lewie Coyle's importance in helping them to integrate but since McBurnie signed from Las Palmas in the summer, Jakirovic says he too has been important.

The Leeds-born striker's big personality has added a lot to the group alongside the 13 goals he has already scored in amber-and-black.

"Oli McBurnie always makes a circus there with them," is how former Bosnia midfielder Jakirovic, who was new to English football in the summer, puts it.

"Oli is a welcoming guy, he has experience abroad. He was in Spain, so he knows it's very important that those players feel at home.

"But Oli is there. He's a leader, a captain. He's also a domestic player, so it's very important."

Influenced by their Turkish owner Acun Ilicali and his knowledge of that league in particular as a former Fenerbahce vice-president but above all a fan, Hull's squad has had a heavy foreign influence in recent years.

But Jakirovic feels the mix of personalities they have now makes it very easier for outsiders to fit in.

"This is not at all a problem here," he said. "The group is very nice. I have a very good group of characters.

"They are very polite, which I don't like sometimes. In these 7-8 months we've done, until now, a great job. We should be proud of that.

"In the Championship, we are there (fifth in the table). We have 15 games to go.

"I think all the players who join us now will be very helpful.

"They can help the team, and we will try to increase their minutes so that they can catch good form and the rhythm of the games."