Hull City’s unbeaten Premier League start is over.
After four matches without defeat, Sergej Jakirović’s side finally suffered their first loss of the campaign on Saturday afternoon — a dramatic 2–1 defeat to Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
But the result itself was not the only thing dominating the conversation after the final whistle.
The reaction to Jakirović’s post-match interview has quickly become another talking point, with attention turning to what the Hull boss said after watching his side fall behind twice inside the opening seven minutes, miss a penalty and then launch a determined second-half fightback.
A TNT Sports reporter has now spoken about the reaction surrounding the Hull manager and the performance, adding another layer to an already emotional afternoon for the Tigers.
And there is plenty to discuss.
Because, despite losing, Hull were not simply blown away.
They were punished by a disastrous opening spell, found themselves 2–0 down almost immediately, missed a huge opportunity from the penalty spot and then came back strongly enough to make Newcastle supporters extremely uncomfortable during the closing stages.
That is why the conversation surrounding Jakirović’s interview has become so interesting.
—
HULL’S PERFECT START FINALLY ENDS
Before Saturday, Hull had given their supporters plenty to celebrate.
The Tigers returned to the Premier League with a stunning 2–0 victory over Manchester United.
They then followed that with a victory over Coventry City.
A goalless draw against Aston Villa came next.
And last weekend, Jakirović’s side travelled to Stamford Bridge and produced another eye-catching result by holding Chelsea to a 2–2 draw.
That left Hull unbeaten after four matches and sitting among the early pace-setters.
Eight points from their opening four games had transformed expectations around the club.
Suddenly, the Tigers were not simply talking about survival.
They were being discussed as one of the surprise stories of the opening weeks of the Premier League season.
Then came Newcastle.
And within seven minutes, everything looked completely different.
—
TWO GOALS IN SEVEN MINUTES
Newcastle came into the match needing a response.
They had suffered a heavy 4–1 defeat against Leeds United in their previous Premier League match, and the pressure was on Matthias Jaissle’s side to react.
They did exactly that.
Joe Willock opened the scoring before Lewis Hall doubled Newcastle’s advantage.
Two goals.
Seven minutes.
Hull had barely settled into the match before they were facing a huge deficit.
For a team that had conceded only two goals across its opening four Premier League fixtures, the opening spell was particularly unusual.
The Tigers had built their early success around defensive discipline.
At St James’ Park, that discipline disappeared temporarily.
But Jakirović’s players did not collapse.
That proved to be crucial.
—
THE PENALTY THAT COULD HAVE CHANGED EVERYTHING
Hull eventually had an opportunity to get themselves back into the match.
Yoane Wissa stepped forward to take a penalty.
It was a massive moment.
At 2–0 down, a successful penalty would have completely changed the mood.
Instead, Wissa missed.
Newcastle goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek made the crucial intervention, keeping Newcastle’s two-goal advantage intact.
For Hull, it was another frustrating moment in a match where opportunities were appearing but not being converted.
And yet, the Tigers continued.
That persistence eventually paid off.
—
MOHAMED-ALI CHO GIVES HULL HOPE
Hull’s pressure eventually produced a reward.
Mohamed-Ali Cho pulled one back in the second half.
Suddenly, the match was alive again.
Newcastle had dominated the opening period.
Hull were now pushing.
The home side were no longer comfortable.
And the momentum began shifting.
Newcastle’s defensive problems, which had already been exposed against Leeds, started appearing again.
Hull saw opportunities.
The Tigers began asking questions.
And by the closing stages, Newcastle were hanging on.
The Guardian described Hull as putting Newcastle under intense pressure late in the match, with substitute Robinho Vaz among those coming close to an equaliser.
That is why the final scoreline does not tell the entire story.
Newcastle won 2–1.
But Hull were very close to taking something from the game.
—
THEN CAME THE JAKIROVIĆ INTERVIEW
After the final whistle, attention turned towards Jakirović.
The Hull manager had watched his team lose for the first time in the Premier League this season.
The reaction was inevitably mixed.
Some supporters were frustrated by the opening seven minutes.
Others were disappointed by the missed penalty.
And some were encouraged by the way Hull fought their way back into the contest.
That is where the manager’s post-match comments became important.
Jakirović has repeatedly spoken about keeping Hull grounded during their extraordinary start to the campaign.
Only days before the Newcastle game, he had stressed the importance of remaining focused despite the attention surrounding the club.
His philosophy has been consistent: Hull must continue working, remain organised and avoid becoming carried away by early success.
Saturday’s defeat tested that philosophy.
—
THE TNT SPORTS REACTION
The TNT Sports angle has now added another dimension to the discussion.
Rather than simply looking at the final score, the reporter’s reaction focuses attention on how Hull responded after the disastrous opening.
That is important.
Because there were two very different Hull performances inside the same match.
The first Hull appeared during the opening seven minutes.
The second appeared after the damage had been done.
The first conceded twice.
The second fought back.
The first struggled to contain Newcastle.
The second created enough pressure to make the hosts extremely nervous.
And that contrast is exactly why some observers have resisted judging Hull’s performance purely from the result.
—
JAKIROVIĆ HAS REASON TO BE FRUSTRATED
There are obvious reasons why the Hull boss will be disappointed.
Going 2–0 down so quickly is almost impossible to ignore.
The penalty miss is another major talking point.
And Newcastle had already been showing defensive vulnerability before this match.
Hull therefore had opportunities to make the afternoon even more difficult for their hosts.
Instead, they gave Newcastle an early advantage.
That is something Jakirović will almost certainly want his players to learn from.
But the other side of the argument is equally important.
Hull did not give up.
They did not allow the early setback to become a heavy defeat.
They continued competing.
They scored.
They created late chances.
And they pushed Newcastle until the final whistle.
—
THE MANAGER’S BIGGEST TEST NOW
For Jakirović, the most important part of the defeat may not be what happened during the first seven minutes.
It could be what happens next.
Hull’s unbeaten run has ended.
There is now no question about that.
But one defeat does not erase what happened during the opening four matches.
Before Newcastle, Hull had taken eight points from four games.
They had beaten Manchester United.
They had beaten Coventry.
They had drawn with Aston Villa.
They had taken a point from Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Reuters had already highlighted Hull’s remarkable start before the Newcastle game, noting their eight points from four matches.
Now they have to respond to adversity.
And that is where Jakirović’s leadership will come under the microscope.
—
THE JOE COLE SHADOW
There is also another subplot surrounding Hull’s Premier League campaign that refuses to disappear.
Earlier this season, TNT Sports pundit Joe Cole faced criticism from Hull supporters after comments about the club’s prospects and his decision not to cover their opening match against Manchester United.
Hull famously responded on the pitch by defeating United 2–0.
Jakirović subsequently acknowledged that such comments could provide additional motivation for his players.
That history has helped create a particularly intense relationship between Hull and TNT Sports coverage.
So whenever another TNT Sports personality discusses Hull, supporters naturally pay close attention.
Saturday’s defeat has therefore provided another opportunity for the wider football conversation around the club to intensify.
—
BUT THIS WAS NOT A HUMILIATION
That distinction matters.
Hull lost.
There is no need to disguise that.
Newcastle scored twice inside seven minutes and ultimately held on for the victory.
But the final stages were completely different from the opening stages.
Hull fought back.
Cho’s goal gave them belief.
Newcastle began defending deeper.
The visitors created opportunities.
And Hornicek was forced into important saves.
The Guardian described Newcastle as clinging on during the closing stages.
So while Hull’s unbeaten run has ended, their performance after going 2–0 down provides another piece of evidence about the character Jakirović has built within the squad.
—
THE BIG QUESTION FOR HULL
Now comes the real test.
How do the Tigers respond?
The easiest thing would have been to allow the Newcastle defeat to damage their confidence.
But that would ignore everything they had already achieved.
Hull have already shown they can respond to difficult situations.
They came from behind against Chelsea.
They recovered from conceding early at Stamford Bridge.
They have played against some of the Premier League’s biggest clubs without looking overwhelmed.
And at Newcastle, despite conceding twice almost immediately, they remained competitive.
That resilience could prove more important than the result itself.
—
FANS WILL STILL BE ASKING QUESTIONS
However, supporters are entitled to ask questions.
Why did Hull start so slowly?
Why did Newcastle find it so easy to score twice?
Could Wissa’s penalty have changed the game?
Should Hull have attacked earlier?
Could Jakirović have changed the system sooner?
Those questions will dominate discussions in the aftermath.
And that is perfectly normal following a defeat.
The manager will now have to analyse the match honestly.
The players will have to take responsibility.
And the club will have to make sure one defeat does not become the beginning of a difficult run.
—
THE FINAL VERDICT BELONGS TO THE NEXT MATCH
The TNT Sports reaction may continue to circulate.
Jakirović’s interview may continue to be debated.
The missed penalty will undoubtedly be replayed.
The two early Newcastle goals will be analysed.
And fans will continue discussing what went wrong.
But the next match will ultimately tell us more.
Hull have now experienced their first real setback of the Premier League campaign.
They know what losing feels like again.
They know exactly where they made mistakes.
And they also know that even after falling 2–0 behind at St James’ Park, they had enough character to make Newcastle fight until the very end.
That is the strange thing about Saturday’s defeat.
The scoreboard says:
Newcastle United 2–1 Hull City.
Hull’s unbeaten start is over.
But the way the Tigers responded after their nightmare opening has ensured that the conversation surrounding Jakirović’s side is far from finished.
The manager now has one job.
Make sure this defeat becomes a lesson — not a turning point.