Hull City 2-1 Leicester City: Premier League champions fall to shock defeat as Adama Diomande and Robert Snodgrass help underdogs win opener

The Premier League was back with a bang - and an upset - as champions Leicester were downed by two goals scored by three players from Hull, a club supposedly in crisis but not showing it during these 90 minutes.

The hosts' opener was initially credited to Abel Hernandez and may indeed rest with him but actually the ball was simultaneously attacked during dual backward flips by Hernandez and team-mate Adama Diomande.

There have been acrobatic moves into the synchronised diving in Rio in the last week that have been less spectacular and it was a fine way for a largely dull first half to be brought to life.

PLAYER RATINGS, PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE AND MATCH ZONE

HULL CITY (4-1-4-1): Jakupovic 6; Elmohamady 6.5, Livermore 6.5, Davies 6.5, Robertson 6; Clucas 6.5; Snodgrass 7.5, Meyler 6, Huddlestone 6, Diomande 7.5; Hernandez 6.5

Subs not used: Kuciak, Maloney, Tymon, Bowen, Luer, Olley, Clackstone

Goals: Diomande 45+1, Snodgrass 57

Booked: Davies, Clucas

LEICESTER CITY (4-4-2): Schmeichel 6; Simpson 6.5 (Ulloa 83), Hernandez 5.5, Morgan 5.5, Fuchs 6.5; Mahrez 6.5, King 6 (Amartey 68, 6), Drinkwater 6, Gray 6 (Okazaki 68, 5.5); Musa 6.5, Vardy 5.5

Subs not used: Zieler, Chilwell, Albrighton, Kapustka

Goal: Mahrez 47

Booked: Fuchs, Simpson

Referee: Mike Dean 6

Attendance: 21,037

The Foxes were level early in the second half when Riyhad Mahrez converted a penalty awarded for a foul outside the area. Then Hull secured a winner to tip the prevailing 'narrative' on its head when Robert Snodgrass lashed home from 18 yards.

And so Leicester became the first English champions since Arsenal in 1989 to begin their title defence with a defeat in their opening game of the following season.

The mood outside the ground beforehand could not have been more contrasting. The KCOM stadium had been daubed with graffiti overnight reading 'Allams Out' - a message to the owners.

Assem Allam and son Ehab have made no secret they want to sell, which is presumably why they are not putting any money into transfers and have a squad so thin that midfielder Jake Livermore was playing at centre half.

A small group of Hull fans — about 20 of them — were part of a police-escorted official protest through the town before kick-off, while hundreds of others made plain their disquiet with chants against the Allams outside.

A club spokesman said of the damage to exterior walls: 'It's extremely disappointing. The stadium will be here long after anyone involved with the club currently has been and gone and therefore to vandalise the building is mindless.'

Leicester fans meanwhile, strolled merrily in the blustery pre-match August sunshine singing: 'We are staying up.' By the time they had taken up their places together inside, this had become: 'Champions of England, we know what we are.' That chant wasn't being sung too loudly by the end.

Champions of England, of course, is what Leicester's Thai owners have helped to make them during a fairytale season that resonated globally.

The lure of the Premier League's TV billions was already drawing in potential club buyers from all parts of the world. The fact that Leicester have now proved a 'small' club can actually win the thing, and gain access to the Champions League, and even more money, is only going to encourage more.

Hence the apparent interest from multiple parties in Hull, including two different groups from China. One of them is headed by one of China's richest businesswomen, Hawken Xi Liu, who is conservatively worth around $1 billion. She used to be married to a maths teacher from south London called Tony Hawken, and became rich when her idea to turn former bomb shelters into shopping centres took off. Two years ago, Hawken gave a series of interviews saying he was divorcing his wife because he disliked their newfound mega-wealthy lifestyle.

Whether that deal comes off remains to be seen. Hull, with only 13 fit senior players available to caretaker manager Mike Phelan, certainly need some investment if they are to be consistently competitive following promotion.

As spirited as they were in a first half that ended with them ahead, they don't have the strength in depth of Leicester. Yes, you read that correctly. Leicester, even after the enormous loss of N'Golo Kante, now have a better and deeper squad than the one that lifted the title in May.

Claudio Ranieri gave starts to two of his summer signings, with £18million Nigerian striker Ahmed Musa making his league debut after his move from CSKA Moscow and Spanish defender Luis Hernandez starting in central defence. The latter was playing because Robert Huth was suspended. Andy King was playing in midfield in place of Kante.

Hull had the first decent sight of goal in the sixth minute, Curtis Davies heading wide from a Snodgrass corner.

Leicester's Demarai Gray sliced over at the other end after latching onto a long throw-in from Christian Fuchs before the PFA Player of the Year Mahrez gave the first glimpse of his tricky ability. Jamie Vardy dummied a pass from Musa, leaving it to Mahrez to lash it goalward, albeit wide.

Mahrez then combined with Danny Drinkwater to set up the latter on the right, a move also ending in a forceful strike, wide.

Leicester were marginally the more creative at this stage, but it was a poor opening half. After 40 minutes of tedium the first period fizzed to a finish. Leicester had a triple-chance thwarted, with Fuchs' shot blocked, then Vardy's, by Livermore, before Mahrez jinked onto the rebound and curled wide.

Play switched rapidly, a Snodgrass effort resulting in a corner, from which King's defensive header almost went into his own net but resulted in a corner. From the phase of play at that corner, Hernandez and Diomande launched their synchronised back flips — surely without knowing each other were about to do the same thing — and connected to take Hull ahead.

It was just 14 seconds into the second half that Gray was felled by Tom Huddlestone, resulting in a penalty. Replays clearly showed the contact was made outside the box but presumably Mike Dean adjudged it continued past the line. Mahrez slammed home down the middle.

Towards the hour, Snodgrass put the hosts back in front from 18 yards, and with Leicester reeling came close to making it 3-1 but his direct free-kick was deflected behind.