Oli McBurnie 2.0: Hull City must target deal to break Sheffield Utd hearts again | OneFootball

The Tigers should potentially be looking to sign one of the Scot's former Bramall Lane teammates

For Hull City, their preparations ahead of the upcoming 2026/27 Premier League season will begin imminently, as they hope to assemble a squad capable of defying the odds for a second successive campaign.

Despite being an 'unknown' in English football at the time of his appointment 11 months ago, Sergej Jakirovic has written himself into folklore at the MKM Stadium through the Tigers' unexpected and dramatic promotion from the Championship, having defeated Middlesbrough 1-0 at Wembley Stadium last weekend.

It means that top-flight football will be returning to East Yorkshire for just the sixth season in the club's 122-year history, and the Bosnian will at least hope to match the achievements of the 2008/09 and 2013/14 campaigns under Phil Brown and Steve Bruce, where Premier League survival was secured in both seasons immediately after promotion, despite the subsequent seasons ending in the misfortune of relegation.

As well as sending over 33,000 fans into ecstasy at Wembley's east end, Oli McBurnie's 95th-minute winner bagged City a reported £215m in prize funds, and it has since been claimed by football finance expert, Kieran Maguire, that at least £100m could be spent without the club being in any danger of breaching the Premier League's strict PSR regulations.

This comes after Hull's fourth full season under Acun Ilicali's ownership began with the sanction of a two-window transfer fee restriction, leaving McBurnie to be the club's marquee signing on a free transfer.

And, with the transfer window looming, the Tigers should potentially look to serve his former club, Sheffield United, some more transfer heartache.

Hull City should target VfL Wolfsburg raid for ex-Sheffield United ace Vini Souza after relegation

That's because former Bramall Lane ace, Vini Souza, has been the subject of mass transfer calls from Unitedites after his first season with Bundesliga side, VfL Wolfsburg, ended in heartbreak as they were relegated in the promotion-relegation play-off versus Paderborn over two legs.

Souza, of course, was an opinion-splitter throughout his time in the Steel City, but was able to redeem himself after a tumultuous first season which ended in relegation through a starring role in the Blades' play-off campaign of 2024/25 under Chris Wilder, which also ended in disappointment against Sunderland in North London.

The 26-year-old cost the German side a reported €15m last summer after featuring 76 times for the South Yorkshire outfit, and his underlying numbers have very much remained solid despite his current employers' relegation.

It has been claimed by the Sheffield Star, though, that while Wilder is planning a major rebuild in S2, the chances of a reunion are 'unrealistic', meaning City should look to pounce in a bid to add extra physicality and steel in midfield.

Despite winning promotion, the central midfield area has, at times, represented a problem for Jakirovic, even with the impressive performances of boyhood Blade, Regan Slater, and Matt Crooks.

However, a settled midfield next season which features Souza at its base could be exactly what is required, especially in physical contests. The former youth international ranks extremely high in percentile comparisons to midfield counterparts within Europe's top-five leagues when it comes to defensive contributions and the number of aerial duels won.

Sheffield United would feel another case of 'what if?' if Hull City signed Vini Souza

Straight after their Wembley success, Jakirovic was quick to point out that, in some ways, City were extremely fortunate to fall on the right side of a 'domino effect' that involved themselves and United, with Wilder being sacked last summer and replaced by ex-Tigers boss, Ruben Selles, before returning to Bramall Lane for a third time last summer.

McBurnie, of course, was signed by Wilder for £20m in 2019 from Swansea City, and was heavily linked with both clubs, and Hull, throughout the previous summer window, before he eventually linked up with several ex-Bladesmen such as John Egan, John Lundstram, Slater and Kieran Dowell.

Therefore, whilst also addressing a key area of the squad ahead of their Premier League return, a move for Souza would only serve further pain for those across Yorkshire from Hull's point of view.

On top of this, if Wolfsburg look to at least recoup the €15m spent on the Brazilian, Hull could be looking at a record signing, which currently stands at £13m when Ryan Mason joined from Tottenham Hotspur a decade ago, just months before his career was sadly cut short.