Erik ten Hag's reign as Manchester United manager got off to a nightmare start as Brighton & Hove Albion pulled off a historic win.
The Seagulls won 2-1 to mark their fifth season playing Premier League football in style and record their first ever victory at Old Trafford. Pascal Gross' double did the damage, as Graham Potter's side tore the hapless Red Devil apart in the first half. An own goal from Alexis MacAllister gave United hope late in the day, but their abject performance was worthy of nothing more than a defeat.
As new signings Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez were both handed starts, superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was benched by Ten Hag. But not even his introduction early in the second half could salvage a point, as Ronaldo's transfer saga runs on.
Here are seven talking points from Old Trafford.
1. Pre-match protests
Although this season represents a fresh start for the Red Devils on the pitch, fans aren't forgetting that the same problems that linger behind the scenes. Supporters gathered en route to Old Trafford to once again voice their disapproval over the much-maligned Glazer family's ownership.
A giant flag read: "Fight greed. Fight for United. Fight Glazers," alongside a smaller one demanding: "We want our club back." And a protest took place inside of the famous Munich tunnel just before 1pm, with fans chanting: "We want Glazers out, say we want Glazers out." The pre-match scenes also forced the club to briefly close their official megastore.
2. Ten Hag shows Ronaldo who's boss
When the news filtered through on Thursday that Anthony Martial had picked up a hamstring injury in training, the previously unfathomable thought of Cristiano Ronaldo starting against Brighton came to every fan's mind. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner - despite wanting to leave the club - made his stance about being selected crystal clear on Saturday evening, posting a picture of himself playing at Old Trafford on Instagram with the caption: "Ready."
But Erik ten Hag stuck with the players who'd featured more prominently in pre-season, deciding to start Christian Eriksen up front as a false nine. Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho flanked him on the left and right respectively. Meanwhile, Bruno Fernandes took up his regular role behind the striker, as Ronaldo began the match on the bench - not that he'd be there for long.
3. A Gross start
As a new era begins at Old Trafford, supporters didn't even get half an hour without a reminder of last season's horrors. As David de Gea ambled with the ball at his feet, his hoof upfield went straight to a Brighton man. The Seagulls briskly moved the ball into United's half, as Scott McTominay was unable to commit a foul and risk an early second yellow card.
Then Leandro Trossard set Danny Welbeck away down the left and beat the Red Devils' offside trap, allowing the former United striker - who'd given Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez plenty of problems in the opening exchanges - to drive into the penalty area and square the ball to Pascal Gross, who had a tap-in.
4. Total football at Old Trafford
While all the talk pre-match was about how Ten Hag was on the road to transforming the Red Devils into an exciting team who play on the front foot, Brighton showed them exactly how it's done with a sublime team goal. Working their way from being under pressure in their own corner, the Seagulls cut right through United's attack, midfield and defence to double their lead.
Gross was the man one the scoresheet, tucking away in front of open goal once again after De Gea's smart save from Solly March - who beat Luke Shaw with ease - fell straight to the German's feet. Boos rang around Old Trafford when the half-time whistle blew to signal a premature end to Ten Hag's short-lived honeymoon period.
5. Lucky Lisandro
Moments after Ten Hag turned to Ronaldo just eight minutes into the second half, new £56.7m signing Martinez almost gave his team a bigger mountain to climb. The Red Devils defender clumsily charged into Welbeck, who went down in a heap as everyone looked towards referee Paul Tierney.
But despite a hasty VAR check, a penalty wasn't given to the surprise of anybody with the luxury of a replay and Martinez was able to escape without his debut going from bad to worse.
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6. Sanchez hands United hope
It wasn't the kind of goal Ten Hag would've been hoping to mark his first as Red Devils manager, but Diogo Dalot and Harry Maguire were there to bundle home a goal back in the 68th minute - along with the help two Brighton players. Robert Sanchez made a hash of things from a Fernandes corner, and when clawing it back parried the ball towards Alexis MacAllister's leg and the ball found itself in the back of the net.
A lengthy VAR checked ensued, with a potential foul, handball and offside all coming under scrutiny, but the goal stood and United had hope late in the day.
7. Nightmare start
Sadly for their new Red Devil boss, however, the late goal wasn't enough to prevent an opening day disaster. With a trip to Brentford up next followed by an almighty clash with Liverpool, it won't get easier for Ten Hag in his quest to bring the glory days back to United.
The kind of football that fans were hoping for seems weeks if not months away, and the Ronaldo saga looks no closer to a conclusion. If he wanted to know how truly difficult the job in the Old Trafford hot seat is, Ten Hag already knows after one official game.
