Sergej Jakirović (; 23 December 1976) is a professional football manager and former player who is the current manager of Premier League club Hull City. He played for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.
Early life Born in Mostar, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia (modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina) to parents Enver Jakirović and Jelena (née Talajić). His family, at the time, lived in Metković, SR Croatia, where he grew up, finished elementary and secondary school, and also began his football career. His father, Enver, a long-time goalkeeper and coach of NK Neretva Metković, influenced Sergej from his earliest youth to become a footballer. Consequently, Sergej also began as a goalkeeper for NK Neretva but soon showed that his skills lay elsewhere, shifting to a central midfield role. He progressed through all of NK Neretva's youth selections and made a five-minute senior debut against NK Osijek on May 24, 1995, while the club was competing in the top-tier 1. HNL.
Club career Jakirović played in the Croatian First League for Neretva, Istra, Kamen Ingrad, Zagreb and Rijeka. He also had a couple of spells in European leagues, playing for Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia and SK Austria Kärnten in the Austrian league.
International career In August 2005, in preparation for the upcoming four 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification matches, Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team manager Blaž Slišković named Jakirović to the squad. Jakirović made his debut for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team in an August 2005 friendly match away against Estonia. He was called up by Slišković a total of six times, four of which were in World Cup qualification Group 7, including two friendlies. Ultimately, he earned a total of five caps, including a two features in friendlies, his first against Estonia and on February 2006 against Japan, which was his final international match—in World Cup qualifications, between 3 September and 12 October 2005, he entered the game from the bench on two occasions, in wins against Belgium and Lithuania, was unused substitute against San Marino, and in last round he was a starter in a defeat against Serbia and Montenegro in Belgrade.
Managerial career Early career Between 2017 and 2018, Jakirović managed Sesvete in the Croatian Second League.
On 20 June 2018, Jakirović was appointed manager of Croatian First League club Gorica, which he led to fifth place in the 2018–19 season. On 24 February 2020, following a 6–0 loss to Hajduk Split, he was sacked by the club.
On 23 April 2020, Jakirović was named new manager of Slovenian PrvaLiga club Maribor, replacing Darko Milanič. He was sacked on 29 August 2020 after getting eliminated by Northern Irish team Coleraine in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round.
Zrinjski Mostar On 28 December 2020, Jakirović became the new manager of Bosnian Premier League club Zrinjski Mostar, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract with the club.
In his first game in charge, Zrinjski beat Krupa in a league match on 27 February 2021. He oversaw his first loss as Zrinjski manager in a Bosnian Cup game against Sarajevo, played on 10 March 2021.
On 20 January 2022, Jakirović signed a two-and-a-half-year contract extension until 2024. After beating Radnik Bijeljina on 19 March 2022, Zrinjski broke the all-time Bosnian Premier League record with 13 consecutive victories, overpassing the previous record of 12 victories set by Željezničar in the 2011–12 season. On 16 April 2022, he managed Zrinjski to a 4–0 win against Sarajevo, clinching the club's record seventh league title seven rounds before the end of the season. Subsequently, he was named the Bosnian Premier League Manager of the Season.
After getting eliminated from the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League first qualifying round by Moldovan club Sheriff Tiraspol, Jakirović led Zrinjski to the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League play-off round, where they got eliminated by Slovak club Slovan Bratislava following a penalty shoot-out, missing out on a chance to play in the group stage.
On 29 November 2022, the board of Zrinjski confirmed that Jakirović had left the club, as he was set to sign a contract with Croatian top division side Rijeka.
Rijeka
One day after his Zrinjski departure was confirmed, Jakirović signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Rijeka with an option for another year. He made his debut on 21 January 2023, when Rijeka drew 1–1 away against Osijek.
On 28 January, Jakirović won his first match as Rijeka manager after a 2–1 win over Šibenik. After a four-game winning streak, he suffered his first defeat as the club's manager on 25 February 2023 in a 1–0 loss to Slaven Belupo. With Rijeka, Jakirović finished the season in fourth place, qualifying for the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League second qualifying round. The club eliminated Kosovan side Dukagjini and Faroese side B36 Tórshavn, before being drawn against Lille in the play-off round.
Dinamo Zagreb 2023–24 season On 21 August 2023, three days before their match against Lille, Jakirović left Rijeka and was appointed manager of Dinamo Zagreb, replacing Igor Bišćan.
Jakirović managed his first Dinamo Zagreb match against Sparta Prague in the UEFA Europa League play-off round, winning 3–1 at home on 24 August. However, following a 4–1 defeat to Sparta in the second leg on 31 August, Dinamo was eliminated from the Europa League and continued playing in the Conference League group stage. Following a second place finish in group C, Dinamo eliminated Real Betis 2–1 on aggregate in the knockout round play-offs, qualifying to the round of 16. After winning 2–0 at home against PAOK in the first leg, the side suffered a 5–1 defeat in the second leg, getting eliminated from the Conference League.
On the domestic level, Jakirović led Dinamo to a league and cup double, defeating his former club Rijeka 3–1 on aggregate in the Croatian Cup final.
2024–25 season Jakirović's side started the 2024–25 season by beating Istra 1961 in the first round of the league season on 2 August 2024. Dinamo managed to qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League league phase after eliminating Qarabağ 5–0 on aggregate. In the first league phase match, however, the team suffered a 9–2 defeat against Bayern Munich; it was the club's heaviest ever defeat, and the first time that one side had conceded nine goals in the history of the competition. Two days after the match, on 19 September, he was sacked by the club.
Kayserispor On 28 January 2025, Jakirović was appointed manager of Süper Lig club Kayserispor. Despite guiding the team to safety from relegation, he left the club by mutual consent on 8 June 2025, following the 2024–25 season's conclusion.
Hull City On 11 June 2025, Jakirović was appointed as the head coach of Hull City on a two-year contract, with the club holding an option for a further year. It was announced that his exit from Kayserispor was down to Hull agreeing "a settlement" with the club, which allowed him to sign for the EFL Championship side. Jakirović was joined in England by long-time assistant Marko Salatović, as well as the rest of his personal coaching team consisting of Marin Ivančić and Anđelo Roguljić.
On 9 August 2025, Jakirović debuted as Hull City manager for their league match against Coventry City which ended in a goalless draw. In April 2026, he was nominated for the EFL Championship manager of the year award. He qualified the club for the Championship play-offs and eliminated Millwall in the semi-finals, securing the Tigers a place in the final and a chance to return to the top tier of English football for the first time since 2017. On 23 May 2026, Jakirović's side won the play-off final and returned to the Premier League after beating Middlesbrough 1–0 thanks to a 95th minute goal by Oli McBurnie.
On 22 August 2026, Hull opened their Premier League season with a shock 2–0 win over Manchester United at the MKM Stadium. As a result, Jakirović became the first ever Bosnian to both manage and win a Premier League match. A few weeks later, on 4 September, he signed a two-year contract extension with the club. On 11 September, Jakirović was awarded the Barclays Manager of the Month award for August 2026, having won his first two games against Manchester United and Coventry City, not conceding a single goal in the process.
Personal life
Jakirović was born in Mostar, in modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina, and grew up in Metković, modern-day Croatia, so he has both Bosnian and Croatian citizenship. His father, Enver "Ekra" Jakirović, was a goalkeeper who started playing football professionally for FK Velež in his native Mostar, where the Jakirović's household is located and family from his father side still reside in the Old Town. However, Sergej's father already at the age of 18 moved to NK Neretva Metković, where he settled and married. Sergej is married to Marina, a medical nurse, and they have two sons, Leon and Matija. Both of his sons play football at youth level with NK Dinamo Zagreb, Leon as a midfielder and younger Matija as a goalkeeper.
Before leaving Croatia, Jakirović was very active and highly successful in Croatian veterans' football. He made a total of 29 appearances and scored 23 goals at various humanitarian and anniversary matches involving the Croatian national football and futsal teams. He is a multiple-time Croatian champion in club veterans football and futsal, and was twice named the best player of the Croatian Indoor Veterans Football Championship, first with the veterans of Sesvete in 2015, and the second time with the veterans of Neretva in 2018.
Career statistics International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsBosnia and Herzegovina200540200610Total50
Managerial statistics
+ Managerial record by team and tenureTeamFromToRecordSesvete5 June 201718 June 2018Gorica20 June 201824 February 2020Maribor23 April 202029 August 2020Zrinjski Mostar28 December 202029 November 2022Rijeka30 November 202221 August 2023Dinamo Zagreb21 August 202319 September 2024Kayserispor28 January 20258 June 2025Hull City11 June 2025PresentTotal
Honours Player Spartak Trnava Slovak Cup: 1997–98
CSKA Sofia Bulgarian Cup: 2005–06 Bulgarian Supercup: 2006
Manager Zrinjski Mostar Bosnian Premier League: 2021–22
Dinamo Zagreb Croatian Football League: 2023–24 Croatian Cup: 2023–24
Hull City EFL Championship play-offs: 2026
Individual Bosnian Premier League Manager of the Season: 2021–22 Croatian Football League Manager of the Season: 2023–24 Croatian Football League Manager of the Month: August 2024 Premier League Manager of the Month: August 2026 Award of the City of Metković: 2026
References
External links