Hull City make request to EFL ahead of Southampton play-off final | OneFootball

The Tigers are looking to make a crucial on-pitch change ahead of next weekend

Hull City are just one week away from the club's biggest game in years, as they secured their place at Wembley Stadium for the upcoming Championship play-off final by seeing off Millwall over two legs.

Sergej Jakirovic's team have defied the odds all year to be in this position, having been tipped for relegation at the beginning of the season after they were hit with a two-window transfer fee restriction, meaning all transfer business had to be conducted through the acquisition of free transfers or loan deals without added payments.

And, although this is also the Bosnian's first experience of managing in the Championship, it couldn't have gone much better, and it can now potentially end in glory under the North London arch on Saturday week.

The Tigers ran out 2-0 winners at The Den on Monday night after a goalless draw at the MKM Stadium in their semi-final first leg, with Mohamed Belloumi and Joe Gelhardt's second-half strikes deciding a fiercely contested 180-minute showdown.

24 hours later, Southampton joined them as semi-final victors over Middlesbrough after following up another goalless first leg with a 2-1 win at St Mary's, albeit those encounters, and the second tier play-offs as a whole, have been overshadowed by the ongoing spygate debacle.

As such, it was only confirmed on Thursday afternoon after plenty of fan anger from a Hull perspective, that the play-off final will, as things stand, kick off at 4:30PM next Saturday, although the outcome of spygate may not come to light until May 19th through the hearing of an independent disciplinary committee behind-closed-doors.

However, aside from the request City had as a club to urge supporters for patience, Jakirovic and his on-pitch chiefs have also made another to the EFL regarding the make-up of his upcoming 20-man squad in North London.

Hull City request David Akintola re-registration ahead of Southampton play-off final

After a conversation with City's sporting director, Jared Dublin, James Hoggarth of BBC Radio Humberside reports that the Tigers are looking to re-register Nigerian winger, David Akintola, into their official squad in place of Belgian central midfielder, Eliot Matazo.

Akintola was one of several free transfer additions made in Jakirovic's first summer window, signing a two-year contract in mid-August following the expiration of his contract at Turkish Süper Lig side, Caykur Rizespor.

The 30-year-old had made 21 appearances in all competitions prior to the conclusion of the winter transfer window, where he was de-registered, before City were unsuccessful in a re-registering attempt following an injury to Bristol City loanee, Yu Hirakawa, in February.

Akintola's solitary goal came in a 1-0 win over Sheffield United on October 4th, before providing two more assists versus Bristol City and Preston North End for Joe Gelhardt and Liam Millar respectively, as well as scoring the winning penalty against Blackburn Rovers in the FA Cup third round.

With Matazo suffering the cruel fate of another ACL injury within the space of 14 months, this time to the right knee, in the 2-1 loss at Charlton Athletic on April 25th, they are hoping the EFL grant the request involving the attacker this time around.

A decision could be made by Friday, or Monday at the latest, with the request recognising Akintola's dedication when out of the official squad, which also saw him named as City's Community Award winner at the end of the regular season.

Sergej Jakirovic could receive quadruple boost ahead of Hull City's Championship play-off final

A return to the squad would certainly be a nice gesture towards Akintola for his continued high spirits in what has been a mixed situation in East Yorkshire for the winger.

However, this may not be the only good news coming Jakirovic's way in terms of squad selection, as it was reported that all of Cody Drameh, Toby Collyer and Amir Hadziahmetovic are set to return to full training on Monday and could play a part at Wembley after their respective injuries last month.

Meanwhile, it does also remain to be seen if eight-goal striker, Kyle Joseph, will feature after he was forced off late in the first half at The Den on Monday after being on the receiving end of a strong tackle from Thierno Ballo, before Belloumi eventually took his place and produced a remarkable 46-minute performance.