Hull Maul Manchester United as Carrick's Era Begins
Michael Carrick insisted there was nothing “easy” about opening the season at Hull and then hosting Ipswich. Ninety bruising minutes at the MKM Stadium proved him right – and then some.
This was a humiliation.
On a day that was supposed to showcase a refreshed Manchester United, complete with new faces in midfield and the stability of a permanent manager, Hull ripped up the script and danced on the pieces. The Tigers’ first Premier League win over United since 2017 was no smash-and-grab. It was a dismantling.
Hull seize their moment
Hull came into the campaign tipped by many to go straight back down. Sergej Jakirovic heard all of it. He said his team could shock people. By full-time, he must have been wondering if he’d woken up in the wrong decade.
Last season they had already made history, sneaking up via the play-offs from sixth – a feat not seen since Blackpool in 2010. Now they have a statement win to match the story.
Their first Premier League goal in nine years detonated around the stadium like a long‑delayed celebration. Orange and black shirts bounced, scarves twirled, and United – the supposed title contenders – looked small.
United start bright, then crumble
It hadn’t started that way. For 10 minutes or so, United played like the heavyweights they are supposed to be.
Luke Shaw swung in a teasing cross, Bryan Mbeumo met it flush, and Hull’s debutant goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis had to parry sharply. Moments later, Noussair Mazraoui slid in Matheus Cunha, whose low drive again forced Tzolakis into action at full stretch.
United were probing, neat, almost comfortable.
Then Hull decided they’d had enough of being polite hosts.
Ryan Giles whipped in a cross, Oli McBurnie rose and thumped a header that made Senne Lammens work. That warning went unheeded. United’s back line, already jittery, soon fell apart at the one thing they were supposed to have drilled all pre-season: set-pieces.
Set-piece shambles
Seventeen minutes in, United’s season-old frailty reappeared in full view.
From a Hull corner, McBurnie simply slipped away from slack markers and hammered a shot at goal. Lammens could only push it out, straight to Nigeria defender Semi Ajayi, who stabbed in from close range.
One-nil, and United’s composure vanished.
Hull’s first top-flight goal since their long exile ended was greeted with bedlam. The MKM Stadium shook as fans in orange and black roared, sang and bounced. It felt like a club reintroduced to the big stage – and a giant uncertain of its own footing.
United tried to respond. Patrick Dorgu found himself with a glorious chance to hush the crowd after Harry Maguire picked him out, but he scuffed wide. It summed up the visitors: hesitant, blunt, unconvincing.
At the back, they were worse.
Regan Slater stood over a free-kick in the 38th minute. United’s defence, already branded “shambolic” by their own body language, backed that up with their positioning. Slater delivered with precision, Senegal defender Nampalys Mendy attacked it with conviction, and his thumping header flew past Lammens.
Two-nil. “You’re getting mauled by the Tigers,” came the chant. It stung because it was true.
On the touchline, Carrick looked stunned.
New boys vanish, old problems remain
This was supposed to be a new chapter. Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa, Andrey Santos from Chelsea – fresh legs, fresh ideas. Instead, both disappeared into the grey sludge of United’s midfield.
They didn’t control the game. They didn’t break lines. They didn’t protect their defence. By the time they were both hooked midway through the second half, their debuts had turned into a cautionary tale.
Up front, United were toothless. At the back, they were in pieces. The balance that Carrick brought as interim manager after Ruben Amorim’s chaotic reign felt a long way away.
Alan Shearer did not bother dressing it up. “Man United have been shocking, no hunger, they’ve been terrible,” the former England captain said on BBC duty. It was brutal. It was also accurate.
Rashford return falls flat
Carrick rolled the dice at half-time, sending on Marcus Rashford. The England forward, back from his loan spell at Barcelona, was tasked with sparking a comeback.
Nothing changed.
Hull stayed sharper, hungrier, more dangerous. Mohamed Belloumi stepped in from distance and let fly with a fizzing effort that skimmed just wide. The home side played like a team with something to prove. United played like a side expecting something to happen for them, not because of them.
Even with changes from the bench, the visitors never found a gear above second. Attacks broke down. Passes went astray. Hull’s defence, so widely tipped to be out of its depth this season, coped comfortably.
United, chasing shadows, simply faded out of the contest.
Pressure mounts on Carrick
Carrick’s calm during his interim spell last season had been central to United’s revival. He steadied a listing ship, eased the turbulence after Amorim and earned his promotion to the permanent job.
That promotion came with an expectation: challenge for a first English title since 2013. The club have backed him in the market, agreeing a deal for Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba, and Carrick has asked for more.
After this wretched display, those demands will only grow louder.
Hull’s players celebrated with their fans at full-time, soaking in a win that felt like a warning to the rest of the league: underestimate them at your peril. United trudged away, their own warning of a supposed “easy start” turned into a grim punchline.
The season is barely under way, but one question already hangs over Carrick and his side: was this just an opening-day shock, or the first sign that United’s title talk is built on sand?
