Hull City 2 Manchester United 0<\/a><\/p>\n This wasn\u2019t in the script \u2014 Manchester United comprehensively beaten by everyone\u2019s favourites to go down and Oli McBurnie, Hull\u2019s bearded genius, running the show.<\/p>\n \n Oli McBurnie, climbing above Manchester United\u2019s defence (Charlotte Wilson\/Offside\/Offside via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Tactically, the Hull head coach Sergej Jakirovic got it spot on \u2014 his use of a three-man defence and wing-backs exposed familiar problems for United.<\/p>\n Hull were \u2014 with apologies \u2014 tigerish. The sight of Matt Crooks and Nobel Mendy teaming up on Bruno Fernandes just after the half-hour mark epitomised their hunger and desire. By that point, Hull had won almost twice as many duels as United and were also winning the game.<\/p>\n Regan Slater channelled his inner David Beckham with his set-piece deliveries, Mohamed Belloumi ran around nutmegging people, and McBurnie dropped a lone-striker masterclass.<\/p>\n It was that sort of day for Hull.<\/p>\n 2. Brentford<\/strong><\/p>\n Brentford 3 Tottenham Hotspur 0<\/a><\/p>\n This time last year, we would have been surprised. But not now. Brentford under Keith Andrews are an excellent team with multiple threats.<\/p>\n Although Brentford had a lot of success against Spurs on Saturday through their centre-backs going direct into either Kevin Schade or Igor Thiago, who played like an old-school No 9, they produced some lovely football too, often involving the ubiquitous Keane Lewis-Potter (left-back, really?). On top of that, their pressing was excellent.<\/p>\n The star of the show, though, was their \u00a341million ($56m) club-record signing Mamadou Sangare \u2014 athletic, two assists and a left foot that opens up all sorts of passing angles when he drops into the right-side pocket.<\/p>\n Mamadou Sangare making an instant impact \ud83d\udc4a@BrentfordFC<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/W1VDie0LQq<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Premier League (@premierleague) August 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n You want to say it, but you can\u2019t after the opening game. Ah, s*d it. Sangare could be the signing of the season.<\/p>\n 3. Brighton & Hove Albion<\/strong><\/p>\n Brighton & Hove Albion 4 Aston Villa 0<\/a><\/p>\n I know you\u2019re top of the \u2018real\u2019 league too, Brighton fans, and nobody disputes the fact that you\u2019ve made a fantastic start, but allowances were made here for the way that Villa contributed to their own downfall: an own goal, a first-half red card, and their maddening determination to play out against your team\u2019s excellent high press.<\/p>\n The clues were there early on in Sunday\u2019s game, when Pascal Gross and Yasin Ayari targeted Joao Gomes deep inside his own half. Georginio Rutter\u2019s willingness to run in behind exposed the lack of mobility in the centre of Villa\u2019s defence for the second goal in the 18th minute.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udd35 @BHAFC<\/a> turning it on in their opening match of the season! pic.twitter.com\/udQxwrcgMV<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Premier League (@premierleague) August 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n And from that point on, Brighton were enjoying themselves in the seaside sunshine, with their new signing Luka Vuskovic spraying diagonals and two-goal Jack Hinshelwood showing why head coach Fabian Hurzeler thinks he\u2019s a No 10.<\/p>\n 4. Chelsea<\/p>\n Fulham 2 Chelsea 3<\/p>\n Welcome back, Cole Palmer<\/a>.<\/p>\n Operating alongside Morgan Rogers and behind Joao Pedro, Palmer was exceptional against Fulham. He played like a man who was desperate to make up for lost time after a frustrating season and no spot in England\u2019s World Cup squad.<\/p>\n Cole Palmer running the show is a joy to watch \ud83d\udcab pic.twitter.com\/v1FsMXZlMt<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Premier League (@premierleague) August 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Although Palmer was the star at Craven Cottage on Monday, that front three was electric together, scoring a goal each and combining in a way that makes you think Chelsea can win games this season even if they\u2019re not perfect in other areas.<\/p>\n Last night at Craven Cottage offered an example \u2014 goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was at fault for the first goal and did not cover himself in glory on the second, when Levi Colwill also needed to do better.<\/p>\n Ultimately, though, Chelsea\u2019s attack was the story of the game and provided a lot of entertainment value.<\/p>\n 5. Arsenal<\/strong><\/p>\n Arsenal 3 Coventry City 0<\/a><\/p>\n This was football\u2019s equivalent of a zone 2 run. For those of you who aren\u2019t familiar with zone 2 running, the idea is that you run fairly slowly, at no more than 60 to 70 per cent of your maximum heart rate. It\u2019s comfortable and conversational, helping build endurance for tougher, more demanding events.<\/p>\n Arsenal, in game one of the 38 in this season\u2019s Premier League, didn\u2019t break a sweat against promoted Coventry. They were relaxed (though manager Mikel Arteta didn\u2019t like that word<\/a>) \u2014 well, apart from new signing Christos Tzolis, who seems to be in a hurry to make a good impression. Excellent against Manchester City in the Community Shield, Tzolis was a livewire again on Friday, forcing mistakes, creating goals and shooting at every opportunity.<\/p>\n \n How livewire Tzolis will have appeared to Coventry defenders at times on Friday (Julian Finney\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n Anyway, sorry Arsenal fans, you can\u2019t win the weekend for a leisurely kickabout.<\/p>\n 6. Everton<\/strong><\/p>\n Everton 2 Crystal Palace 0<\/a><\/p>\n Not quite as routine as the score suggests. Palace recorded their highest expected goals<\/a>\u00a0tally (2.04) in a Premier League game without scoring since 2018 \u2014 that\u2019s not an invitation for the xG haters among you to get your knickers in a twist, just an illustration that Everton were fortunate not to concede.<\/p>\n At the same time, there were clear positives in this Everton performance.<\/p>\n The inexperienced midfield duo of Harrison Armstrong (dispossessing Daniel Munoz) and Hayden Hackney (a quickly taken free kick) had a hand in the goals, Tyrique George was full of positive running on the left, Iliman Ndiaye demonstrated his creative quality once again<\/a> and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored a lovely opener.<\/p>\n Is Thierno Barry the long-term answer up front? Probably not. Is there a better smile than his in the Premier League? Definitely not.<\/p>\n \n (Naomi Baker\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 7. Ipswich Town<\/strong><\/p>\n Ipswich Town 2 Sunderland 1<\/a><\/p>\n Early days, but the first impressions are that Ipswich are much better-equipped to survive in the Premier League<\/a>\u00a0than after their previous promotion two years ago \u2014 and so they should be, after spending \u00a3136million this summer.<\/p>\n There\u2019s been a major upgrade across the front four, and two of those players \u2014 Emersonn, a Brazilian striker signed from Toulouse, and Julio Enciso, bought from Strasbourg \u2014 combined for the breakthrough on Saturday. Full of running and capable of taking a player on, Enciso was excellent.<\/p>\n Enciso’s run, Emersonn’s finish. \ud83d\ude2e\u200d\ud83d\udca8<\/p>\n Our first goal of the season. \u26bd\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/rW0C1sGWlx<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Ipswich Town (@IpswichTown) August 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n At the other end, left-back Leif Davis caught the eye with a couple of superbly timed challenges, as did 6ft 9in (201cm) goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen, who, casually \u2014 and it really was effortless \u2014 threw the ball into the opposition half for Emersonn to bring down.<\/p>\n The hero, though, was Sunderland old boy Jack Clarke, who came off the bench to turn one point (a draw would probably have been a fair result) into three.<\/p>\n \n (Richard Pelham\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 8. Leeds United<\/strong><\/p>\n Nottingham Forest 0 Leeds United 1<\/a><\/p>\n A clean sheet and an away victory on the opening day: what\u2019s not to like?<\/p>\n The timing of Anton Stach\u2019s 88th-minute free-kick goal (we need a wider conversation about the German and set pieces) makes this sound like a smash-and-grab, which wasn\u2019t really the case.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfaf Off the mark in 26\/27! pic.twitter.com\/WiOHPqWUet<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Leeds United (@LUFC) August 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Granted, Leeds weren\u2019t exactly pushing for a winner, but it was also hard to see Forest, despite their momentum for a period in the second half, scoring at the other end.<\/p>\n From Leeds\u2019 point of view, Saturday was a disciplined defensive performance (that doesn\u2019t mean we failed to pick out the sight of their centre-back Joe Rodon overlapping) in keeping with their form in the second half of last season, albeit with a few new faces.<\/p>\n One of them, James Trafford, made an excellent stop to keep out an Igor Jesus header.<\/p>\n 9. Newcastle United<\/strong><\/p>\n Newcastle United 2 Liverpool 2<\/a><\/p>\n The kick-in-the-guts last-gasp equaliser apart, this was fun. Perhaps a lot more fun than Newcastle supporters imagined on the back of a summer when it felt as though the doom and gloom had returned to Tyneside.<\/p>\n New coach Matthias Jaissle\u2019s brand of vertical football lifted the mood at Newcastle and caused Liverpool plenty of problems on a day when Yoane Wissa played like a man possessed<\/a>.<\/p>\n Deployed as a No 10 and later as a striker, Wissa epitomised all that was good about Newcastle with his energy and drive, leaving a trail of Liverpool players in his wake in the lead-up to the second goal and generally inspiring those around him.<\/p>\n Poetry in motion \ud83e\udef6 pic.twitter.com\/J2Hr7G3EeZ<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Newcastle United (@NUFC) August 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n There were signs that Anthony Elanga, who put Newcastle ahead early on, will benefit from Jaissle\u2019s style of play too.<\/p>\n Nick Woltemade\u2019s reinvention\u2026 that will have to wait for another day.<\/p>\n 10. Manchester City<\/strong><\/p>\n Manchester City 2 Bournemouth 1<\/a><\/p>\n Talk about making hard work of it. Bournemouth are awkward opponents, as City need no reminding after their draw on the south coast at the end of last season finished their title challenge, but this was still a frustrating watch.<\/p>\n Erling Haaland was strangely out of sorts in front of goal, Marc Guehi found himself deployed in centre midfield, and there was a vulnerability about City defensively, highlighted by Bournemouth\u2019s goal. As for Phil Foden, is right-winger really his best position?<\/p>\n Yes, City created (and squandered) chances before Guehi\u2019s late equaliser, but they weren\u2019t playing with any real fluency.<\/p>\n They badly needed a spark, and substitute Rayan Cherki provided it. His second assist, to slip Josko Gvardiol through on goal to win it, was reminiscent of that beautiful pass<\/a> he played to Guehi away to Chelsea last season.<\/p>\n Timed to perfection. pic.twitter.com\/PGNBSq7HTE<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Manchester City (@ManCity) August 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Manchester City 2 Bournemouth 1<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s have a look at what you could have won.\u201d<\/p>\n For younger readers, that catchphrase was coined by the 1990s British television presenter Jim Bowen, who took great pride in showing contestants the luxury prize they had missed out on in the darts-based game show Bullseye.<\/p>\n Well, Bournemouth, the three points were yours in Manchester on Sunday, with the clock running down. Then, for reasons that are hard to fathom, Guehi was given a second invitation of the afternoon to score from a free header, and this time he wasn\u2019t so forgiving.<\/p>\n \n Better late than never, Marc Guehi scores Manchester City\u2019s equaliser (Darren Staples\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Gvardiol\u2019s stoppage-time winner compounded the visitors\u2019 disappointment on a day when they looked a lot like Andoni Iraola\u2019s Bournemouth side, which is exactly what the club intended when they appointed Marco Rose to succeed him<\/a>.<\/p>\n Just one nagging thought: could Bournemouth have been a bit more ambitious chasing a second goal on the counter?<\/p>\n 12. Liverpool<\/strong><\/p>\n Newcastle 2 Liverpool 2<\/a><\/p>\n New season, same problems: full-backs, midfield, front line.<\/p>\n Liverpool came away with a point at St James\u2019 Park, courtesy of Dominik Szoboszlai\u2019s nerveless stoppage-time penalty, but the performance was a reminder that Iraola has an awful lot to fix before they can even think about contending for the title again.<\/p>\n This is a brief overview, not a full analysis, which is probably a blessing. But if Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong are the answers at full-back, what\u2019s the question?<\/p>\n How can their midfield be so passive? (The ease with which Wissa ran through for the second goal would have alarmed Liverpool fans.)<\/p>\n And at what point will Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz demonstrate why they spent the best part of \u00a3250million on them last summer?<\/p>\n \n Isak was back at Newcastle but failed to shine (George Wood\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 13. Fulham<\/strong><\/p>\n Fulham 2 Chelsea 3<\/a><\/p>\n You get the feeling that people are waiting for Alvaro Arbeloa to fail at Fulham. The way the Spaniard set up his team defensively against Chelsea when playing out, with so much space between the two centre-backs, raises questions, especially as the visitors profited inside the first minute.<\/p>\n Chelsea\u2019s second and third goals weren\u2019t too clever from a defensive perspective either, and unfortunately that undermined Fulham\u2019s good work in other areas, including their control in possession, Josh King\u2019s impressive contribution and the edge that newcomer Gonzalo Garcia, their other goalscorer, gave the attack. There\u2019s a lot to like about the 22-year-old Spaniard.<\/p>\n \n Fulham\u2019s new striker Gonzalo Garcia (Adrian Dennis\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n It will be interesting to see whether Arbeloa\u2019s tactics in possession evolve. Either way, you can\u2019t help but think that Fulham\u2019s defence would benefit from a right-footed centre-back.<\/p>\n 14. Nottingham Forest<\/strong><\/p>\n Forest 0 Leeds 1<\/a><\/p>\n Forest weren\u2019t bad \u2014 Nikola Milenkovic headed against the post, Igor Jesus was denied (Igor Jesus is always denied) and Chris Wood dragged a presentable chance wide.<\/p>\n \n Thwarted again, Igor Jesus failed to score against Leeds United (Darren Staples\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n As for Leeds, you couldn\u2019t really see them scoring until they did in the closing stages \u2014 and Matz Sels, Forest\u2019s goalkeeper, will be more disappointed than anyone.<\/p>\n But Forest need time to adapt to their latest head coach Oliver Glasner\u2019s formation and style. Murillo looked as comfortable under new management as anyone, stepping out to create that opportunity for Wood, and it will be fascinating to see whether James McAtee can take his chance and be former Crystal Palace boss Glasner\u2019s new Adam Wharton.<\/p>\n As for Jesus, he was involved in the best passage of play and had two options: feed Wood through the middle in a race against three Leeds players or release Neco Williams breaking into space on the right.<\/p>\n Frustratingly, he went for the former.<\/p>\n 15. Crystal Palace<\/strong><\/p>\n Everton 2 Palace 0<\/a><\/p>\n As the former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson used to say: \u201cFirst half, good. Second half, not so good.\u201d<\/p>\n Palace could, and should, have taken the lead on Saturday. But a combination of Jean-Philippe Mateta\u2019s profligacy and Jordan Pickford\u2019s reflexes (what a pass from Wharton to Eddie Nketiah) meant that a promising start didn\u2019t get the reward it deserved.<\/p>\n Where is their top goalscorer from last season, Ismaila Sarr, when you need him?<\/a><\/p>\n Conceding a poor second from a quickly taken free kick was a blow from which they never looked like recovering. On top of that, they lost defender Chadi Riad to a potentially serious knee injury midway through the second half.<\/p>\n At least there was an encouraging cameo at right wing-back from new signing Anan Khalaili, and Yeremy Pino produced a lovely piece of skill to sit Merlin Rohl on his backside. A shame about the shot afterwards.<\/p>\n 16. Sunderland<\/strong><\/p>\n Ipswich 2 Sunderland 1<\/p>\n If Ipswich had committed the same mistakes Sunderland did on Saturday, it would have been an easy line for a commentator to trot out: \u201cThat\u2019s the difference between the Championship and the Premier League \u2014 you get punished at this level.\u201d<\/p>\n Sunderland, however, know what the Premier League is all about by now, and that will have made the manner of this defeat all the more annoying for them.<\/p>\n Luke O\u2019Nien, playing as the left-sided centre-back, gave the ball away in the lead-up to the first goal. Omar Alderete, O\u2019Nien\u2019s second-half replacement, carelessly did the same thing for the late winner.<\/p>\n In between those moments, Nilson Angulo scored a wonderful free kick and Brian Brobbey threatened, but Sunderland never really played with the conviction to go on and win the game.<\/p>\n Nilson Angulo’s first Sunderland goal \ud83d\udc4f\ud83c\udfaf pic.twitter.com\/VqvudnAprj<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sunderland AFC (@SunderlandAFC) August 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n 17. Coventry City<\/strong><\/p>\n Arsenal 3 Coventry 0<\/p>\n Probably the hardest performance of the opening round to gauge, bearing in mind that Coventry, back in the top flight for the first time in 25 years, were playing the Premier League champions in their backyard on the season\u2019s opening night. In truth, it wasn\u2019t much of a contest.<\/p>\n Unfortunately for Coventry, they didn\u2019t help themselves. Milan van Ewijk, their right-back, was caught on the ball for the first goal, allowing Tzolis to pick his pocket, and Carl Rushworth pushed another cross from the Greek winger into the path of Bukayo Saka for the second midway through the first half.<\/p>\n One feature of Coventry\u2019s play that stood out was their willingness to go from back to front quickly \u2014 they played twice as many long balls as Arsenal \u2014 and that should suit new signing Taiwo Awoniyi, who gave their front line some presence when he came on for the final 20 minutes.<\/p>\n 18. Manchester United<\/strong><\/p>\n Hull 2 Manchester United 0<\/a><\/p>\n When Michael Carrick said that his United team \u201cdidn\u2019t quite click\u201d in Saturday\u2019s early kick-off, it was difficult to understand the use of the word \u201cquite\u201d.<\/p>\n United peaked after three minutes, when Ayden Heaven, Patrick Dorgu, Bruno Fernandes, Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans combined neatly on the left. Seconds later, Fernandes was \u2018quite\u2019 close to being through on goal.<\/p>\n Then it went downhill. Fast.<\/p>\n Carrick didn\u2019t like it when the former Norway striker Jan Aage Fjortoft, covering the match for the Swedish broadcaster Viaplay, questioned whether his team lacked passion in the first half. United lacked intensity, that\u2019s for sure. Hull snapped into tackles and regularly came out on top.<\/p>\n Matheus Cunha as a false nine simply didn\u2019t work. Dorgu ran into players, and Fernandes, throwing his arms around in exasperation at Tielemans\u2019 failure to control the ball, looked a picture of frustration.<\/p>\n \n (George Wood\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n 19. Tottenham Hotspur<\/strong><\/p>\n Brentford 3 Spurs 0<\/a><\/p>\n There\u2019s no sugarcoating it: Tottenham were awful.<\/p>\n Brentford registered 26 shots and routinely opened Spurs up in all manner of ways, exposing just how bad Roberto De Zerbi\u2019s side were in and out of possession.<\/p>\n In fact, Spurs got off lightly in losing 3-0. Brentford\u2019s xG was 3.96 \u2014 their highest in a Premier League game since they played relegation-bound Southampton in January last year.<\/p>\n \n (Alex Pantling\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n The second goal felt symptomatic of Spurs\u2019 performance.<\/p>\n Richarlison, who never looks comfortable playing with his back to goal, was unable to retain the ball deep inside his own half. Lucas Bergvall, who had been given the runaround by Sangare on the first goal, then carelessly lost possession trying to go past Mathias Jensen. As for Jensen\u2019s shot, Antonin Kinsky parried it into the path of Vitaly Janelt.<\/p>\n Vitaly Janelt doubles Brentford’s lead! \ud83d\udc1d pic.twitter.com\/AYh5BGhJBQ<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2290937530-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
\n
\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291736117-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291643527-scaled-e1787595017262.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291561408-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
\n
\n
![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0824_WhoWonEPL_Win.png\")
11. Bournemouth<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291152732-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291734078-scaled-e1787596055859.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291344735-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2290941401-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291579341-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291580679-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291686343-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0824_WhoWonEPL_Loss.png\")
<\/p>\n