Sergej Jakirovic keen to ‘enjoy it more’ after Hull City's narrow win over Portsmouth
Sergej Jakirovic conceded he wants to enjoy Hull City’s promotion push more after his side’s smash-and-grab win at Portmsouth.
The high-flying Tigers struggled to find their rhythm at Fratton Park and had just 34 per cent possession.
However, they still managed to find a way to win as Matt Crooks clinched a 1-0 victory.
Jakirovic was pleased to see another three points collected but wants to have more fun in the run-in.
Hull City boss reflects
He said: “We didn’t play our game or our style because it was very demanding. I don’t know the reason but in some parts of the game we lacked energy, especially in midfield.
“My main message at half-time was that we cannot play like this and we had to try something at least.
“In the second half, especially after the substitutions, we brought a lot of energy on the pitch and we scored after one mistake.
“We knew their goalkeeper likes to take risks as he is very good with the ball so we pressed the ball.
“We have shown this season that we can win without playing well. I would like us to play much better but it wasn’t on me, it was on the players.
“There are 12 games to go and we are there. We will push but I would like to enjoy it more.”
The Portsmouth view
Portsmouth, meanwhile, were left devastated as they suffered a fresh blow in their battle to avoid relegation from the Championship.
Pompey boss John Mousinho said: “I’m very disappointed with the result. I think we controlled pretty much the entire game. The performance in the first half was really good. We made some poor decisions in the second half but we came away with 21 shots, Hull had two.
“We shot ourselves in the foot with what we did for the goal. If it was one of those games where we don’t create enough at the top end of the pitch then fine, we dust ourselves down and take a point, but the manner of the goal was unacceptable.”