United mauled by Tigers on opening day shock
Utd put in a disastrous performance as they deseverdly lost to Hull City this afternoon. Slack defending on two first-half set-pieces gave us a huge mountain to overcome. They were unable to recover to leave many asking questions at the end.
It was a dream start back in the top-flight for Hull though. They profited from two smart deliveries in the opening half and were solid throughout. They will be hoping this can be the launchpad for a decent season.
MIchael Carrick gave new signings Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans their first competitive start together in midfield. Marcus Rashford had been given the number nine shirt and he started on the bench with Benjamin Sesko, Lisandro Martinez and Kobbie Mainoo. Amad Diallo was absent altogether. He had picked up an injury in training.
Sergej Jakirovic handed out debuts to Konstantinos Tzolakis, Nobel Mendy, and Elliott Stroud. It appeared to be a three at the back with wing-backs. The Tigers were playing in their first top flight game since 2017.
The play-off winners did not appear to be phased by the task at hand though. Although the visitors saw enough of the ball, they did not not create much of note in the opening stages.
Bryan Mbeumo had the first effort of note on 13 minutes after Luke Shaw’s cross found him in space. His first time effort was saved by Konstantinos Tzolakis. The Greek keeper was then forced into another save from Matheus Cunha.
It was the home side who struck first though on 17 minutes. Ryan Giles had a cross tipped over for a corner. The set-piece came in from Regan Slater, was flicked on and found Ollie McBurnie completely unmarked. His effort was saved by Senne Lammens, but Semi Ajayi was there to stab in the rebound.
It should have been level at the other end on 29 minutes. Harry Maguire played a good ball into the area to find Patrick Dorgu. His finish was well off-target.
And they paid for that on 38 minutes. And another set piece delivery from Slater caused the issue. He whipped in a free-kick that found Nobel Mendy unmarked again. His thumping header put the home fans in dream-land.
Dorgu had another opportunity to pull one back just prior to the break. His header was misdirected. It stayed the same to leave Carrick with major problems to deal with.
The move was to bring on Marcus Rashford for the second-half. His first piece of action was to win a free-kick. The delivery from Bruno Fernandes found Ayden Heaven in a decent position. His finish was poor though.
Hull were defending deeper, but still managed to cause concern at the other end. Mohamed Belloumi picked up a pass and fired goal-wards. It went just over.
The home side kept up their tactics to nullify us. Their system of play appeared to replicate AC Milan’s performance last weekend. Prevent space through the middle, break when the opportunity presented itself and keep the wing-backs out wide.
A blow came on 64 minutes when both goal-scorers were forced off with injuries. Carrick shuffled his deck shortly after to bring on both Benjamin Sesko and Kobbie Mainoo.
United needed to find some sort of response to give themselves hope. The hosts came closest to scoring next though. A low drive from substitute Cody Drameh flew just past the post. A bad day for the travelling fans was getting worse when the announcer stated that one of the trains home had been cancelled.
The visitors did create some chances for Fernandes, Sesko and Cunha as the game reached its final stages. A combination of strong defending and poor touches prevented them from landing some consolation.
Massive celebrations from the home support as we trudged off the pitch. Few would claim credit from such a display. It raises the issue of further strengthening needed, particularly at left-back. The lack of energy this early in the season would also worry many. Both issues need to be dealt with before United take on Ipswich next Sunday at 16:30. Hull travel to fellow promoted side, Coventry, next Saturday.
Hull City: Konstantinos Tzolakis, Lewie Coyle (Cody Drameh 70), Nobel Mendy (Lucas Herrington 64), John Egan, Semi Ajayi (Paddy McNair 64), Ryan Giles (Matt Targett 86), Matt Crooks, Regan Slater, Elliott Stroud (Liam Millar 71), Mohamed Belloumi, Ollie McBurnie
Subs not used: Dillon Phillips, Jens Hjerto-Dahl, Kieran Dowell, Lucas Gourna-Douath.
Booked: Matt Crooks (43)
Sent Off: None
Manchester United: Senne Lammens, Noussair Mazraoui (Diogo Dalot 80), Ayden Heaven, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Andrey Santos (Benjamin Sesko 67), Youri Tielemans (Kobbie Mainoo 67), Matheus Cunha (Shea Lacey 80), Bruno Fernandes, Patrick Dorgu (Marcus Rashford 46), Bryan Mbeumo.
Subs not used: Karl Darlow, Lisandro Martinez, Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro.
Booked: Patrick Dorgu (35)
Sent Off: None
Referee: Darren England
Attendance: 24,470
Simply Red Man of the Match: Regan Slater
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