Sergej Jakirovic questions Hull City decision Tim Walter & Ruben Selles made | OneFootball

Ryan Giles has enjoyed a rebirth at the MKM Stadium under the Bosnian head coach

Hull City head coach Sergej Jakirovic has questioned why his predecessors, Ruben Selles and Tim Walter, did not afford full-back Ryan Giles the opportunity of regular first-team minutes at the MKM Stadium.

The Tigers have been one of the Championship's surprise packages across the opening 21 games of the current campaign in a play-off race which has been extremely compelling.

Jakirovic was appointed as the sixth permanent manager or head coach of Acun Ilicali's near four-year tenure as owner in East Yorkshire in June, replacing the aforementioned Selles, who was handed his P45 by the Turkish media mogul just 11 days after City avoided a second relegation to League One since 2020 on goal difference.

Having never managed in English football beforehand, there was a major sense of scepticism from outsiders and sections of the Tigers fanbase when the former Dinamo Zagreb and Kayserispor boss was handed a two-year contract by Ilicali. But, those fears were only heightened when the club saw a three-window transfer fee restriction - which has since been reduced - imposed on them by the EFL after instances of delayed payments to other clubs last season.

However, such uncertainty has only helped forge a remarkable togetherness between the Bosnian, his players and the supporters at the MKM, who are now dreaming of an unexpected play-off berth at Championship level for the first time since being promoted in such fashion under Steve Bruce nine years ago.

Giles, remarkably, is one of the most long-serving players on the club's books these days after a revolving door of players and management, and he has certainly made the left-back spot his own after previous uncertainty.

Sergej Jakirovic questions previous Hull City, Ryan Giles decisions made by Tim Walter and Ruben Selles

There was a great sense of excitement when Giles' services were initially courted by Hull in February 2024 on a loan basis from Luton Town under Liam Rosenior, with the club vying for promotion at the time.

An obligation-to-buy of £4m was inserted within the deal, and this was activated months later despite the then-controversial call from Ilicali to replace the current RC Strasbourg boss with Walter.

As such, Giles became the subject of intense interest from Middlesbrough under Michael Carrick, having enjoyed major personal success at the Riverside Stadium in 2023/24 as the North East side reached the play-off semi-finals, before a deal failed to materialise.

Walter would utilise the Telford-born man's services just eight times before his dismissal 13 months ago, before Selles swiftly opted to utilise Sean McLoughlin at full-back as City battled against relegation, with Giles eventually returning to Middlesbrough on loan for a second time in February.

Such an agreement proved disastrous for Giles though, as he struggled for form as Boro missed out on the play-offs, although his long-term future with the Tigers remained jeopardised amid the club's uncertain financial position heading into the current campaign.

Fast-forward five months, though, and the defender has enjoyed a remarkable rebirth as City find themselves sixth in the table, whilst he has posted a divisional high of eight assists - all but one of which have resulted in goals for summer signing and experienced second tier goalscorer, Oli McBurnie.

As such, he has been the subject of immense praise from Jakirovic, who has been left somewhat perplexed with the decisions made by those who had gone before him in HU3.

"I think that every manager must speak with the players. It's man-management," the 48-year-old told Hull Live.

"I had a very good conversation at the beginning of this season with him, because I felt here that no one believed in Giles, especially former managers.

"It was very weird for me, because this is a player that the club invested a lot of money in, so you need to give him a chance to prove that he is a good player. So that's it. Giles has played very good and has a very good connection with the strikers in front, especially with McBurnie," he added.

"You can find pluses and minuses in every player, but this is one team. So, we need to put it all together so that they are performing good in their positions.

"I'm very happy because Giles is a very good player with very good speed, delivery and crosses. And also, he has improved a lot in his defence style and play," said the Tigers boss.

Unsurprisingly, City supporters are loving the contribution Giles has made as they have seen their side's style of play completely transformed under Jakirovic, who has got the best out of several players who had previously struggled for form.

The former Wolverhampton Wanderers academy graduate has been a key influence in defence and attack, although, at face value, a record of 36 goals scored and just one fewer conceded would suggest otherwise to outsiders.

As such, City are now starting to see a return on the previously sizeable investment parted with last summer, ironically during a time when they are unable to splash the cash.