Manchester United and Tottenham Humiliated on Opening Weekend

Manchester United’s season began with a thud, not a statement. Beaten, outworked and out-thought, they walked away from Hull with a 2-0 defeat and more questions than answers – while big-spending Tottenham were torn apart 3-0 by Brentford on a bruising opening Premier League weekend.

Hull’s vibrant return, United’s flat response

Back in the Premier League for the first time since 2017 and missing 10 players through injury, Hull should have been vulnerable. Instead, they smelled blood.

Semi Ajayi struck first, Nobel Mendy followed before half-time, and United never recovered at the MKM Stadium on Saturday. Hull played with freedom and bite; United played like a side weighed down by expectation after last season’s third-place finish and the talk of a title push.

There was little sign they can live with champions Arsenal on this evidence.

For Hull, the afternoon carried an extra layer of excitement. Teenage Socceroos defender Lucas Herrington, signed from Colorado Rapids in a deal reported at around $A33 million, came off the bench in the 64th minute for his Premier League debut. At 18, he looked unfazed, drawing praise for an assured, composed cameo as he began to stake a claim for a regular starting role.

United, though, left chastened. The performance was limp, the defending loose, the attacking play blunt. Yet Michael Carrick refused to turn the dressing room into a battlefield.

“We came here to win so to not take anything away is hugely disappointing. It is not a nice feeling but it is not going to change our direction as a team or a club,” he said, making it clear he would not follow the path of his predecessor Ruben Amorim, whose emotional outbursts helped cost him his job last season.

“You have to carry on as normal. We just don’t all have to shout and scream and create some chaos. Calmness doesn’t mean there is not emotion.”

The message was deliberate: no panic, at least not publicly. But the pressure has started early.

Big money, bigger problems for Tottenham

If United’s defeat stung, Tottenham’s was an embarrassment.

After spending over £200 million ($A380 million) to overhaul a squad that only just escaped relegation on the final day last season, they arrived in west London with new faces and renewed ambition. Roberto De Zerbi threw four of his signings straight in: Sandro Tonali, Andrew Robertson, Marcos Senesi and Jan Paul van Hecke all started, with Mateus Fernandes introduced in the second half.

The script said statement win. Brentford ripped it up.

On a fraction of Tottenham’s budget, Keith Andrews’ side played with aggression and clarity, exposing the soft underbelly of De Zerbi’s rebuilt team. Keane Lewis-Potter opened the scoring, Vitaly Janelt added a second before the break, and the visitors looked lost.

Any hopes of a response after half-time vanished when Michael Kayode made it 3-0. Tottenham’s defending disintegrated, their structure collapsed, and Brentford threatened to turn a rout into a humiliation.

It nearly did. Igor Thiago stepped up to take a penalty that would have made it 4-0, only to miss and spare Spurs an even more damaging scoreline. The gulf between money spent and quality produced was glaring.

Sage’s Palace stumble, Glasner’s Forest fall late

Crystal Palace also started the new era on the wrong note. Pierre Sage, the French coach tasked with following Oliver Glasner’s trophy-laden spell, watched his side lose 2-0 at Everton.

Under Glasner, Palace had lifted the FA Cup in 2025 and the UEFA Conference League last season, achievements that earned him a move to Nottingham Forest over the summer. Sage arrived with pedigree of his own after guiding Lens to second in Ligue 1 and a French Cup triumph, but his Premier League debut was harsh.

Against the run of play, Everton struck in the 42nd minute. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall robbed Daniel Munoz and drove a fierce shot into the far corner past Dean Henderson. Early in the second half, Palace were punished again: Thierno Barry powered home a bullet header from an Iliman Ndiaye cross in the 53rd minute to seal the points.

Glasner’s first outing with Forest brought no relief either. At the City Ground, Leeds snatched a late 1-0 win. With the clock ticking towards full-time, Anton Stach’s 88th-minute free-kick slipped past keeper Matz Sels, a soft concession that decided the game and set up an immediate rematch in the League Cup second round on Tuesday.

Ipswich announce their return in style

Portman Road, meanwhile, crackled with emotion as Ipswich marked their Premier League return with late drama and a 2-1 victory over Sunderland.

Emersonn, on debut, gave Ipswich the lead in the 24th minute, a dream start for both player and club. Sunderland hit back before the interval when Nilson Angulo whipped in a fine free-kick in the 39th minute to level the contest.

The game seemed destined to drift, but Jack Clarke had other ideas. In the 90th minute, he curled home the winner, crowning Gary O’Neil’s first match in charge since replacing Kieran McKenna with a result that could shape the mood of Ipswich’s campaign.

New eras for City and Liverpool, Arsenal set the pace

The weekend’s narrative now swings towards the champions and the challengers.

On Sunday, Manchester City begin life without Pep Guardiola, with Enzo Maresca stepping into one of the most demanding jobs in football. His first assignment comes against Bournemouth, a match that will be scrutinised for every tactical tweak and touchline gesture.

Liverpool are also resetting. Mohamed Salah has gone, and with him an era, leaving former Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola to reshape a side that must now find new ways to win. His first test is a dangerous one against Newcastle.

At the top of the table, Arsenal have already thrown down a marker. Their title defence opened with a commanding 3-0 win over promoted Coventry on Friday, a reminder to United, Spurs and the rest of the league what a serious contender looks like on day one of a long, unforgiving season.