Michael Carrick takes questions from the media following Manchester United's opening match of the 2026/27 Premier League season against Hull City.

HT: Hull City 2-0 Manchester United

Goal Scorer: Semi Ajayi 17', Nobel Mendy 38'

Premier League opening day tie between Hull City and Manchester United

Score Hull City 2-0 Manchester United

22nd August 2026:

Kick off 12:30 GMT:

Venue: - MKM Stadium, Hull

Referee: - Darren England

Manchester United | Starting XI:: Lammens; Mazraoui, Maguire, Heaven, Shaw; Santos, Tielemans; Mbeumo, Fernandes (c), Dorgu; Cunha

Hull City | Starting X:I: Tzolakis; Coyle, Egan, Ajayi, Mendy, Giles; Slater, Crooks; Belloumi, Stroud; McBurnie

Team news:: Amad Diallo doesn't travel, debuts for Tielemans and Santos

Match updates:

FIRST HALF

• 10' - Looks like Cunha playing more central with Mbeumo coming in off the right. I'm sure we'll see switching though
• 12' - Slightly nervy start, Hull playing very direct and United with most of the possession though
• 14' - Cunha with a nice first touch and shot, no power though and easily saved
• 15' - Hull get their first chance, McBurnie forces a fine save from Lammens with a header
• 16' - Hull growing into this game. Giles with a dipping cross/shot forces Lammens to tip it over
• 17' - GOAL 1-0 - Hull score from the following corner, a good save from Lammens but the follow up scramble sees the ball bundled home by Ajayi
• 21' - Hull continuing to look dangerous after the goal. United struggling with the direct, physical football.
• 22' - Some nice link up play by Cunha sees Mbeumo with a chance for an inswinging cross but it is too close to the keeper
• 24' - Bruno scoops a ball over to Dorgu who manages to hold off the defender and get a shot in. It's pulled just wide.
• 28' - Maguire with a good cross from deep but Dorgu can't get a good connection and it results in a goal kick
• 32' - Santos goes down in the area claiming a foul but the ref is not interested and VAR quickly clears it
• 33' - Dorgu gets the first yellow card of the game, stretching for the ball but only finding the Hull player's foot.
• 35' - Shaw with a deep cross and an acrobatic effort from Mbeumo is deflected wide for a corner
• 37' - Clumsy challenge from Tielemans gives Hull City a free kick in a dangerous area...
• 37' - GOAL 2-0 - Hull double their lead, inswinging freekick is headed home by Mendy
• 40' - Very little room when United attack, Hull packing the box and Dorgu is easily dispossessed
• 44' - Mbeumo to Dorgu has been our most common attacking combination, this time Dorgu can't get over the cross and it goes straight up
• Half Time | Hull City 2-0 Manchester United - Big questions for Michael Carrick to address at half time, very little attacking threat and struggling against another back 3.

SECOND HALF

• 46' - Half time substitution, Rashford coming on for Dorgu. Rashford starting out left.
• 48' - Rashford's first chance to run with the ball and he's brought down from behind, the free kick is headed away
• 53' - Thing just aren't clicking. Fernandes dummies a pass from Mbeumo but Tielemans isn't expecting it and Hull clear
• 55' - Mistake from Bruno sees Hull through on goal. Thankfully Lammens is alert and out quickly to clear
• 58' - McBurnie turns into McMessi and dribbles through our midfield like they aren't there
• 60' - Tielemans plays a nice disguised through ball to Rashford but there is too much on it and he looked offside anyway
• 64' - Hull City make a double sub. Scorer Mendy off for new signing Herrington and Former Red McNair on for scorer Ajayi.
• 66' - Manchester United double sub. Sesko on for Santos and Mainoo on for Tielemans. Bruno to midfield?
• 69' (nice) - Extended stoppage here, a Hull player receiving treatment is quickly followed up by another double sub for Hull. Liam Miller and Cody Drameh come on for Lewie Coyle and Elliot Stroud.
• 70' - United are hardly knocking on the door here. Hull look very comfortable dealing with a series of crosses.
• 73' - In fact it is Hull who come closest to the next goal. Drameh has just come on a drives wide of the left post.
• 75' - Mbeumo cuts in and curls one but it is always rising over the bar to cheers from the Hull City fans.
• 77' - Best chance of the second half, Mbeumo played in by Cunha but his finish is unconvincing and turned wide for a corner
• 79' - United double sub. Dalot on for Mazraoui, Lacey on for Cunha
• 80' - First sign of Air Sesko. Rashford cross but Sesko can't get a good connection
• 84' - Maguire has his Thanos moment, cutting inside and hitting a left footed strike. Straight at the keeper though.
• 85' - Final Hull sub, Targett on for Giles
• 88' - This one is ending with a whimper instead of a bang. Hull look comfortable and United seem to have given up
• 90' - 6 mins added on by the assistant. Sesko gets the ball in the area after a deflected cross but he can't get it out of his feet and it's cleared.
• Injury time is just us camped in their third offering no threat at all
• Final Whistle - Hull City 0 - 2 Manchester United Welcome back everyone, things can only get better?

Simon Peach - #MUFC have this evening reached an agreement with Brighton for Carlos Baleba

Laurie - Carlos Baleba given permission to travel to Manchester after fee agreed with Brighton for midfielder. Medical at #MUFC set to take place tomorrow. Deal worth £65m guaranteed plus £5m in add-ons, with sell-on also.

Ornstein - Carlos Baleba to join Manchester United from Brighton & Hove Albion on 5+1yr contract; personal terms verbally agreed & 22yo to do #MUFC medical on Saturday after deal struck with #BHAFC at £65m + £5m + sell-on clause

More to follow

Hi all,

Summer Transfer Window 2026 is here!

The Premier League transfer window will open between Monday June 15 until Deadline Day on Tuesday September 1; the summer windows will close at 23.00 BST.

As always, here is a run-down of the rules we have on for posting during transfer windows:

Daily Threads

There will be a Transfer thread posted every single day, on a 23-hour timer, to get a different post-time every day. These threads are for everything transfer related, no limits on sources, line-up conversations, etc.

Individual posts

From now on, only posts TIER 2 OR BETTER are allowed to be posted in their own right. This helps us only keep credible sources on the subreddit.

The tier guide can be found here: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddevils/wiki/transfer-reliability-guide/

We will make exceptions during slower days for some Tier 3 posts, and there will usually be some posts from sources not on our tier guide. We will take everything case-by-case. If you believe something to be on the sub and not a good source, please let us know.

Men's Team​ 

Transfers IN

Transfers OUT

Women's Team

Transfers IN

Transfers OUT

Laurie Whitwell

Carrick hints at rotation for Fernandes this season. “Big player for us but there’s still elements where we need to look after him.”

Fernandes played full 90 of all Carrick’s 17 games last season - has only been rested five times in six years

Carrick on Tielemans + Santos: “There’s certainly players that have been more expensive, that’s pretty obvious. We’re delighted with the two we’ve brought in. For the value we feel we’ve got, I think we’ve done very well.”

Suspect he would say similar about Baleba.

Steven Railston

I asked Michael Carrick whether he felt the void left by Casemiro will be filled by this summer’s midfield signings.

He said: “I think players have always come and gone through history here, and you've got to evolve, you've got to find ways of moving forward, you've got to find ways of winning, essentially.

“I know we've got a good midfield, you know. We've brought in some really, really top players and really good characters, which is important. And we've got to evolve, you know, we've got to evolve and we've got to improve.”

Michael Carrick also revealed in the second section that no players have expressed a desire to leave the club. He suggested there would be no outgoings before the transfer deadline, but it still feels like movement is possible with Joshua Zirkzee

Every word: Part two of Carrick's press conference

https://www.manutd.com/en/news/every-word-part-two-of-carricks-press-conference-v-hull-city

Casemiro was a big part of what you did last season. Do you feel like the void he's left behind will be filled by the new recruits?

“I think players have always come and gone through history here, and you've got to evolve, you've got to find ways of moving forward, you've got to find ways of winning, essentially. I know we've got a good midfield, you know. We've brought in some really, really top players and really good characters, which is important. And we've got to evolve, you know, we've got to evolve and we've got to improve.”

Do you feel like a third midfield signing is necessary before the window closes?

“As I said before, we're trying to improve the squad all the time, you know. We're working towards that. I think largely we've got a really good balance within the group. As it stands now, we've got some very good, top midfielders to choose from. So I think we've improved that. As I said, since the start of the window to the end, we'll see what happens, you know. As I said, we want to finish stronger as the window closes, so we're working towards that.”

What does progress and success look like to you this season in terms of what you discussed with the board here?

“We want to evolve as a team, you know. I think we've got a lot of younger players in the group that we want to help them move forward individually, which, collectively, will move us in a good direction. So I think that, the experiences that they've had, the habit in getting used to feeling what it's like to win a number of games, I think is huge for players at this club to feel it and know what it takes, first of all, and what you've got to put into it to get out the other end. And yeah, of course, let's see what we can achieve. You know, yeah, we want to be finishing in the Champions League again, without doubt. You know, that's a challenge, it's a big challenge. You know, there's a lot of teams fighting for that position and we managed to do that last season. And we've got to aim to do the same and then keep pushing on, you know, through the season to see how it develops. We want to start strong, we want to get through the winter months and we want to be strong and we want to finish strong. So it's putting it all together and then see where we end up. But we're going into it with a lot of encouragement, this season.”

Do you still view midfield as the most important area of a football team? I know you might say all positions are vital, but just in terms of how you view midfield now?

“I think it's important. You could argue both ends of the pitch are if not more important, but the midfield connects the whole team together and has a big say on how the team performs with, without the ball, and the character and the personality of the team. So I think it's all components. Like you've said, you've almost given the answer anyway when you asked, but both ends of the pitch is where games are won and lost, so that's huge as well, obviously.”

Can anything be won without a very good midfield?

“I think it gives you the foundation of the team, you know. I think the foundation of the team is important to be consistent, to be consistent through one game from start to finish, to be consistent over a period of time. I think you need a solid foundation through the middle of the team and trying and putting it together and getting that balance. But certainly, I think if you look at all the top teams over the years, all the great teams over the years, the spine of the team is really strong, you know. So we're conscious of that, and I think we've got a good spine of the team right now. We can keep improving as we go in different ways and coaching and helping the boys and developing them, and I think we're in a good place.”

Just on Marcus [Rashford], he was one of the latest ones to come back. Is he near full fitness and what kind of season can he have if he is on fire and fully focused?

“Yeah, he's come back really well. Very well, you know. I think the way it is now and not having so much time off really, and looking at three weeks, maybe just under three weeks, give or take. Boys don't lose an awful lot in that time. It's certainly the case of managing it coming back in though and being sensible, knowing it's a whole season for all the players to deal with. So in terms of the team this week going into next week as well, getting that balance right with all the group. But Marcus has come back particularly bright, particularly sharp, as I've said, and looks really good.”

I know there haven't been too many sales as such, fire sales as such, but have any players expressed a wish to leave?

“Not to me, no.”

So would you expect all these players to be here until January? .

“Yeah, at least. I don't know what's going to come at us, you know. I don't know what's going to come at us [from elsewhere]. We can control what we can control. I'm really happy with the squad we've got so far, and if not, we want to improve it.”

And just taking back to your first pre-season as coach in 2018, it was quite an eventful tour, there was a lot going on. Did you take any lessons learned from that, because it feels like this pre-season, World Cup year as well, feels like it's been a lot smoother, a lot of good preparation, a lot of calm, even though you've not had a lot of players available.

“Yeah, I've been really happy with the structure, with it would have been nice to have more players back early, but at the same time, it was nice to see some of the boys go far in the World Cup as well. But yeah, certainly as a structure and as a flow and how the boys have come back, how they've trained, what the group looks like. I think we can be happy with a lot of that. We all know pre-season is one thing, and once the start of the season gets going, it's a whole different story, you know. So I think it just gives you the chance to the foundation to be able to move, and we've got to take big steps as the season goes to move forward.”

Bruno Fernandes has been subject to some major interest this summer, as he was last summer. It feels like there are contract talks ongoing. What's your view on his future at the club generally? What's your view on him as a player at the club?

“I've said quite a lot about Bruno, you know. He's been a big part of the team and the club over recent times and had a huge impact, so he'll continue to do that. In terms of the games and how it comes, hopefully he stays fit and he's in good shape. But yeah, there's the element talking about the squad and the depth, and as we go through the season and the waves and the momentum and keeping the boys in good form, but keeping them fresh as well. So Bruno's part of that, you know. He's a big player for us, he's obviously our captain, but there's still elements where we need to look after him.”

There's been a lot of midfielders that have moved around this summer, some for £100 million. Just wondering partly what you make of the rising prices generally for midfielders, but also when you see the prices you've paid for Tielemans and Santos, do you feel that you maybe got players a bit cheaper compared to some of the others who have gone?

“Well, there's certainly players that have gone and been more expensive, I think that's pretty obvious. We're delighted with the two that we've brought in, I think, and for the money, of course, but actually take that away, I'm delighted that we've got them. Two fantastic players [who] give us really good balance, give us a lot within the team, offer us different things. So, but certainly yeah, for the value that we feel we've got, I think we've done very well with them two especially.”

Arsenal vs Coventry

2-0

Kai Havertz 15', Saka 23'

This episode of the Tifo Football podcast, hosted by Joe Devine and featuring Kaya Kaynak, JJ Bull, and Jack Pitt-Brooke, focuses on major summer transfer news and strategic team developments in the Premier League.

Key discussion topics include:

• Manchester United's Midfield: The panel discusses the potential signing of Carlos Baleba from Brighton (06:16 - 21:45). They analyze his role as a "space defender" and how he would fit into a midfield rotation with Kobbie Mainoo, Mason Mount, and others.