By Ben Efe 22.8.2026
Super Eagles and Hull City defender Semi Ajayi said he was excited his goalmouth melee strike helped his club to a 2-0 win over Manchester United in Saturday’s Premier League opener.
The home win for Hull coming back to the Premier League after nine years this season, was the first time ever they beat Manchester United in all competitions in 52 years. It was also Ajayi’s first Premier League goal in five years.
He was left unchecked in the Manchester United box and his first time jab off a rebound from the upright was all Hull needed to go with full confidence in the game, and were rewarded with a bright start to their campaign. Nobel Mendy scored the second goal to seal the win for the Tigers.
“It was amazing, it capped off a great start that we had had,” Ajayi told TNT.
“I was buzzing to get the goal that got us on our way. I didn’t really care if any of us scored, there was no VAR check, so I was buzzing that we got the goal.”
He backed his club to prove their critics wrong as the season progressed.
“We’re not focused on outside noise, we back ourselves to do well and, hopefully, we will have a really positive season.”
