Football in August: Hope Turns to Despair for Major Clubs
Football in August always sells hope. New kits, new signings, new manager, new season. The wrapping paper looks perfect.
Open it up, though, and for a few big clubs the present already feels broken.
United’s “revival” hits the buffers at Hull
Manchester United fans had convinced themselves this might finally be the year something stirred again.
Third place under Michael Carrick. A summer that brought Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos. Back-to-back games against promoted sides to ease into the campaign. It all lined up like a soft launch for a statement start.
“First time in years I’m actually impressed not only by United’s line-up, but the substitutes bench as well,” texted Danny to BBC Sport before kick-off at Hull City. That was the mood: cautious, but real, optimism.
Ninety minutes later, reality bit hard.
Hull, up via the play-offs and still adjusting to the division, looked every inch the seasoned Premier League outfit. United, 13-time champions, did not. Carrick’s side were turned over 2-0, outplayed and outmuscled, their supposed squad depth exposed as a mirage.
For supporters who have lived through a decade of “this time it’s different” since Sir Alex Ferguson’s 2012-13 title, it felt horribly familiar.
“As a Man United fan for 38 years if the last 15 years have taught me anything it is not to be optimistic,” said Alec. “I laughed when I read how strong people thought our squad depth was. It’s as deep as a toddler’s swimming pool. Another long season ahead.”
The misery didn’t end with the final whistle. While United were losing to the Tigers, word spread inside the stadium that two trains back to Manchester had been cancelled. Hull fans seized on it, serenading the away end with: “You should have come in a taxi.”
On the pitch and off it, the journey home felt longer than ever.
Spurs spend big, stumble early
If United’s defeat jarred, Tottenham’s collapse was almost expected by some of their own.
Two straight 17th-place finishes had left Spurs fans desperate for a reset. The club responded with a lavish summer: centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke, midfielders Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes, a total outlay of £237m and counting. This was supposed to be the moment they stopped flirting with danger.
Instead, Brentford ripped them apart.
A 3-0 loss to their neighbours on opening weekend, despite fielding new arrivals Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi, Van Hecke and £100m man Tonali, felt like a brutal reminder of how far they still have to climb.
“Let’s face it: Spurs have been through so many false dawns in the Premier League era that the only difference this time was the ludicrous amounts of money they’ve spent in the summer transfer window,” said fan Mark.
Richard was even less surprised. “United losing at Hull was a surprise, but Spurs? Not at all. Two 17th place finishes on the spin! Lots of money spent on bang average players, £85m on a player relegated twice the last two seasons! Not surprised at all.”
The numbers have changed. The doubts clearly haven’t.
West Ham’s promotion dream already wobbling
Relegation last season ended West Ham’s 14-year stay in the Premier League and cut deep. The response was aggressive: go straight back up, and do it with style.
Nuno Espirito Santo stayed to lead the charge. The club smashed the Championship transfer record to land Arne Engels, and added Manor Solomon, Joel Piroe and Divine Mukasa to build what looked like a title-chasing squad.
Two games in, that talk has been shelved.
A two-goal lead thrown away at Burnley, then a 2-1 home defeat to Charlton, has left Nuno’s side with a single point and a fanbase already on edge.
“Will someone put Nuno out of his misery,” said Les. “He got the tactics wrong last season and is doing the same thing again. He should have gone at end of last season playing like this. We deserve nothing.”
From Corfu, Mike echoed the mood. “Sat in Corfu, and like a lot of West Ham fans, unsurprised by our start to the season. No no Nuno. You’ve had 33 games. If you were the guy for Forest and Wolves, fine. But you ain’t for us. But enough is enough.”
The Championship is unforgiving. West Ham are discovering that before August is out.
Rangers’ reset already under fire
North of the border, Rangers also tried to draw a line under recent stumbles with a sweeping overhaul.
The Ibrox club backed Derek McInnes, brought in from Hearts after a standout campaign, and allowed him to reshape the squad. Eleven new signings arrived, including captain Lawrence Shankland following his manager to Glasgow.
The idea was clear: fresh start, renewed challenge, a Rangers side with teeth again.
Instead, the season has opened with boos, an early European exit and the same old questions about direction.
Rangers fell out of the Europa League in qualifying against Jagiellonia Bialystok, a tie that was supposed to be manageable. Domestically, they have just one point from games against Dundee United and Hibernian, and the grumbling at Ibrox is already loud.
“Rangers are going nowhere! What has McInnes been training these guys,” asked Bill. Graeme, with six decades of watching the club behind him, was even more scathing: “I have been watching Rangers for over 60 years and this is the worst team I have ever seen.”
Last season, Russell Martin never recovered from a stumbling start and was gone by early October. McInnes has barely got his coat on and already feels the same heat.
Across Manchester, north London, east London and Glasgow, the calendar insists the season has only just begun. The mood in the stands says otherwise.
Hope arrived on time. Patience, in some places, already looks like it might not last until September.
