It was all going so well! After 44 minutes, Arsenal had a deserved lead over a Liverpool side that looked horribly out of sorts. Three points were in the bag, the bag was tied up tightly and a private security firm was carrying it to the safe. And then everything fell apart like, well, Arsenal. Granted, the Gunners have had a series of unfortunate injuries and absences that left them with two inexperienced centre-backs, but this was a horrible capitulation. Day two of the new season and already the pressure is on Arsene Wenger.
You might have thought that the Europa League Final would have been the last game of Alberto Moreno's Liverpool career, such was the cataclysmic display he offered up, but no. The new season began and there he was, still leaving Liverpool's left flank completely exposed. Theo Walcott must have felt like a small boy on Christmas morning as he was presented with one chance after another. The Arsenal winger missed the penalty that Moreno conceded but didn't mess around when the hapless left-back left him clear on goal 69 seconds later. Note to Klopp: The transfer window is still open for another couple of weeks yet.
Jamie Vardy's only achievement of note on the opening day of the Premier League came when he punched himself in the face, thus cutting out the middle man. Last season's top goalscorer air-kicked one chance and walloped another over the bar before vanishing without trace at some point in the second half. Everyone expected Leicester to regress a little this season, but no-one really expected them to lose to newly-promoted Hull. Claudio Ranieri's decision to alter the balance of the team, particularly up front where Shinji Okazaki was missed, may have been an error.
Vardy, it must be said, was only one culprit among many on Saturday. The season is long and much may change, but this was a profoundly disappointing result for Leicester. Captain Wes Morgan was honest enough to admit afterwards that his team were "second best" and deserved to lose. The only question is how long it will take his team to recover from such a shock to the system. Leicester celebrated last season's triumph long and hard, as they should have done, but it means nothing now. They cannot put in another performance like Saturday's or the doom-monger predictions will turn out to be true.
Crystal Palace have won just two league games in 2016 and you wonder when the pressure is going to build on Alan Pardew. In his defence, this has been a very difficult summer. With players like Yannick Bolasie locked in drawn-out negotiations to leave, he finds himself simultaneously without star players and a transfer fee with which to replace them. But he has to hope that issues resolve themselves soon. Palace have a run of winnable games coming up after next week's trip to Tottenham. He can't afford to lose them.