HULL, England (AP) — Michael Carrick had a message to the critics jumping on Manchester United after its disheartening defeat in the opening round of the Premier League.
Relax.
“I played here for a long time, you don’t do that without the ups and downs but you have to carry on as normal,” United's manager said after the 2-0 loss at Hull on Saturday. “We just don’t all have to shout and scream and create some chaos.”
Still, it didn’t mean Carrick wasn’t hurting inside after being beaten by one of the expected relegation candidates this season.
Hull, after all, was one of the three promoted teams and only came up via the playoffs.
“Calmness doesn’t mean there is not emotion,” he said. “We have lost one game and it is not a nice one.”
United conceded two goals from set pieces in the first half — Semi Ajayi and Nobel Mendy were the scorers — and captain Bruno Fernandes saw the “same mistakes as we did last season in every away game.”
“We give too much of the ball to them. In the first 20 minutes the goalkeeper had more touches on the ball, too much time," Fernandes said. “We need to press a little bit more, be more aggressive. And set play, we need to work on it."
See AP’s full soccer coverage here
Hull City's Elliot Stroud, top, and Manchester United's Youri Tielemans in action during the English Premier League soccer match between Hull City and Manchester United in Kingston upon Hull, England, Saturday Aug. 22, 2026. (Annabel Lee-Ellis/PA via AP)
Manchester United's Bryan Mbeumo, left, and Hull City's Matt Crooks in action during the English Premier League soccer match between Hull City and Manchester United in Kingston upon Hull, England, Saturday Aug. 22, 2026. (Annabel Lee-Ellis/PA via AP)
ZANDVOORT, Netherlands (AP) — George Russell is back at the front of Formula 1 with a new driving style and nothing to lose.
Russell started the second half of the season with a sprint race win and second place in qualifying on Saturday. He said he'd used the mid-season break to learn from the techniques that have taken his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli to the top of the standings, and shed stress along the way.
“After the break I just feel way more relaxed. I don't think I've got anything to lose,” Russell said. "I'm just going to go out, enjoy it, and I don't even really feel in a fight. It's not mine to lose, it's mine to gain."
In nearly a month since the last race in Hungary, Russell got engaged — he joked Friday that he's faster for no longer carrying the ring around — and he took inspiration not just from Antonelli, who he said was doing an “amazing job” with the 2026 car and tires, but from the world of golf.
“If you change your golf swing you’ll probably take half a step back first before making those improvements. I think the break just allowed me to put those learnings into the back of my mind, come here this weekend, not fixating on what I want to try and achieve with the car and the tires but knowing it," he said.
“I’m really, really proud of that because it’s just building that toolbox of experience for me that’s going to allow me to be even better in the years to come.”
Russell's new approach has been supported by a Mercedes car with a basic design that's been stable enough to stay at the front even as the team hasn't brought the rapid succession of upgrades like McLaren and Ferrari have done. Mercedes' last major upgrade package was at the Canadian Grand Prix in May.
By contrast, Norris spent Saturday still getting to grips with an upgraded McLaren which lacked pace through slow corners in the sprint race before finding extra pace to qualify on pole.
“I think we do have a very strong car, we have a strong base. We clearly had a sizable advantage at the start of this season," Russell said after the sprint race. "Only time will tell if we have made the best sort of compromise in terms of when we bring these upgrades to the car."
See AP’s full auto racing coverage here
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain in action during the qualifying for the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort , Netherlands, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain reacts after winning the sprint race at the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort , Netherlands, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)
Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain walks in the pit lane after winning the sprint race at the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort , Netherlands, Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)
