Ajayi is rock at the back as Hull stun Man Utd - player ratings

Konstantinos Tzolakis: Excellent one-handed save to turn away Mbeumo's angled drive, commanding when he came for high balls. Really good debut. 8.Lewie Coyle (off 70): Early deep cross for McBurnie from right wing-back area gave a hint of Hull's plan to attack from wide areas. 7.Semi Ajayi (off 63): In the right place to smash home the rebound to put Hull ahead. His first Premier League goal since January 2021, for West Brom at Wolves. A rock at the back. 9.John Egan: Middle of a defensive three, but stepped into midfield when Hull had the ball. Played the position really well. 8.Ryan Giles (off 84): Like Coyle, a major threat going forward, but got back into position defensively to deny the visitors the same space he enjoyed. 7.Regan Slater: Superb curling free-kick invited Nobel Mendy to attack it for Hull's second. Part of a really good midfield effort. 7.Matt Crooks: Dominated the central midfield battle, industrious and encouraging while never letting his own standards slip. Quietly impressive. Even had the energy for a charge downfield that forced Lammens to clear. 8.Nobel Mendy (off 63): Debut goal capped a fine display, defensively sound, made the clearances when he needed to. 8.Mohamed Belloumi: Very calm performance, tidy short passes and rarely gave the ball away, which allowed Hull to build momentum. 8.Oli McBurnie: Impossible for the visitors to deal with. He didn't score, but the threat he posed created space for team-mates to exploit. 8.Elliot Stroud (off 70): Got away with a late tackle on Harry Maguire in the early stages, which angered the Manchester United defender. However, the rest of his performance was hugely positive. 7.Subs:Paddy McNair (on 63): Solid defensive effort against his old club. 6.Lucas Herrington (on 63): Hull were playing on the counter-attack and he held his position well. 6.Liam Millar (on 70): Led a late breakaway but couldn't create a third. 6.Cody Drameh (on 70): Nipped in on Luke Shaw to prevent him getting a cross over as the visitors' pressure mounted. 6.Matt Targett (on 84): 6.Subs not used: Dillion Phillips, Jens Hjertø-Dahl, Kieran Dowell, Lucas Gourna-Douath.Senne Lammens: Made two good saves before blocking McBurnie's goalbound effort, which led to Ajayi's goal. Despite the score one of the visitors' better performers. 7.Noussair Mazraoui (off 80): Tended to run inside the wide attacking channel but didn't threaten and found it tough to stop Hull when they were going forward. 5.Harry Maguire: Tough day on his return to Hull. Solid enough but couldn't inspire those around him. 6.Ayden Heaven: Outmuscled by McBurnie in the build-up to Hull's opener and got involved in an argument with the forward at half-time. Inexperienced and exposed. 5.Luke Shaw: Hugged the touchline to provide an attacking outlet and linked well, but given too much ground to cover defensively. 6.Andrey Santos (off 66): Competitive debut passed him by. Dominated by Hull midfield and not secure in possession. 5.Youri Tielemans (off 66): Some slick passing, but got sucked into playing high balls into the Hull penalty area which the visitors were ill-equipped to compete for. Disappointing overall. 5.Bryan Mbeumo: United's biggest threat in the first half. One angled drive saved, another acrobatic effort deflected wide. 5.Bruno Fernandes: Tried but nowhere near his best. Didn't get himself into shooting positions. 5.Patrick Dorgu (off 46): Got the ball in dangerous positions but couldn't find the end product and struggled to maintain the flow of United's attacks when needed. Booked as well. Not a surprise to be taken off. 4.Matheus Cunha (off 80): Started up front but natural instinct is to check back into the number 10 position and look for space, which meant the visitors did not have a forward option to aim for. 5.Substitutes:Marcus Rashford (on 46): Half-time arrival for his first Manchester United appearance since December 2024. Immediately started to run at the Hull defence but didn't create anything. 5.Benjamin Sesko (on 66): Physical presence at least created a different challenge for Hull. 5.Kobbie Mainoo (on 66): Struggled to make a significant impact. 5.Diogo Dalot (on 80): 5.Shea Lacey (on 80): 5.Subs not used: Karl Darlow, Lisandro Martinez, Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro