Manchester United supporters were left furious after Harry Maguire and Noussair Mazraoui appeared to be marking each other as Hull City took a surprise lead.
The Red Devils headed to the MKM Stadium hoping to begin the new Premier League season under Michael Carrick with a victory, but instead suffered a 2-0 defeat.
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Newly-promoted Hull shocked their visitors by breaking the deadlock after just 17 minutes, with defender Semi Ajayi finding the back of the net.
The Tigers defender celebrated wildly with the home fans before VAR reviewed the incident and eventually upheld the goal.
However, supporters were more interested in what unfolded inside United’s penalty area in the build-up to the opener.
So Maguire was literally marking his own teammate Mazraoui.😂
Man was actually holding his own teammate and preventing him from defending Ajayi's goal.
This is the same Maguire you guys compared with Chelsea Chalobah, screaming that Tuchel got it wrong by leaving him out of… pic.twitter.com/RL3vX4SA0r
— S T Λ N L E Y ™ (@umehstanleo) August 22, 2026
Replays seemingly showed Maguire wrapping his arms around fellow defender Mazraoui as the two attempted to deal with the threat.
The unusual defensive mix-up quickly became a talking point online, with fans wasting little time sharing their reactions.
One supporter wrote: “Maguire was holding Mazraoui, Man United need defenders right now! De Ligt and Martinez are injury legends, and they’re our best CB”
Another said: “I wonder what Maguire is doing hugging Mazraoui during the corner kick instead of defending an opponent…”
A third added: “Mazraoui, Maguire, Heaven, Shaw In 2026.”
It proved to be a disastrous opening to Carrick’s first Premier League game of the 2026-27 campaign, as United found themselves 2-0 down following goals from Ajayi and Nobel Mendy.
Carrick handed competitive debuts to summer arrivals Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos, making several changes to his starting XI for the trip to Yorkshire.
But after Ajayi’s opener, United were forced to chase the game, while their defending immediately attracted criticism from frustrated supporters.
The score remained 2-0 as the Red Devils endured a deeply disappointing start to their new Premier League campaign.
