Play-off final fears as Hull boss says what should happen to Boro over Spygate

Southampton were kicked out of the final following an investigation by the EFL’s independent disciplinary panel, with the decision being upheld on Wednesday after an appeal was made by the Saints.

As a result, Boro will now be Hull’s opponents for this weekend’s final, where the winner will earn promotion to the Premier League.

Jakirovic spoke to the media on Thursday to preview the final and expressed his concerns about how he and Hull have had little time to prepare to face Boro.

“For sure it is a relief because since Tuesday we now know who we are playing,” Jakirovic 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 joked that Hull should be automatically promoted to the Premier League rather than face Boro in the play-off final, while going on to provide more insight into the club’s brief preparations for Saturday’s showpiece fixture.

“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 boss was happy to see the final wasn't postponed to a later date, with Tuesday, May 26 having been considered as an alternative. Ultimately, 3.30pm this Saturday was the confirmed slot chosen, 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."

In terms of Boro's players, the Hull boss had a degree of sympathy, as he said: "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."

Middlesbrough are preparing for a big summer as they look to rebuild from the heartarche of missing out on promotion to the Premier League.

Make sure you don't miss out on the latest Boro news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.

Your information will be hidden, you'll only ever receive messages from the Teesside Live sports team, and you can leave any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'Exit group'. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.