Ever since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement 13 years ago, Manchester United have been stuck in football’s equivalent of purgatory and a chastening experience in Hull suggests they could be there a while longer. Michael Carrick’s permanent appointment was supposed to hail a new era at Old Trafford but very little has changed based on this defeat.
United were sluggish from start to finish and rightly punished for failing to defend set-pieces with any degree of competence. Centre-backs Semi Ajayi and Nobel Mendy earned the Tigers the prized scalp upon their return to the Premier League, while United are left to ponder if the squad requires more invasive surgery before the transfer window closes.
