The start of a new football season often brings renewed hope for supporters, but for fans of several clubs, that optimism was short-lived after a difficult opening weekend across English and Scottish football.
Manchester United supporters had reason for cautious optimism heading into the new Premier League campaign following a third-placed finish under Michael Carrick last season. The club strengthened their squad with the additions of midfielders Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos, and with fixtures against two promoted sides to open the season, many believed this could be the year United mounted a serious title challenge for the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson's departure in 2013.
Those hopes were dashed almost immediately as United suffered a 2-0 defeat away to newly-promoted Hull City. The result left supporters frustrated, with long-time fan Alec expressing his weariness: "As a Man United fan for 38 years if the last 15 years have taught me anything it is not to be optimistic. I laughed when I read how strong people thought our squad depth was. It's as deep as a toddler's swimming pool. Another long season ahead." Adding to the misery, United's 2,400 travelling supporters faced transport chaos after two trains back to Manchester were cancelled, prompting Hull fans to mock them with chants of "You should have come in a taxi."
Tottenham Hotspur fans experienced a similarly harsh awakening. After successive 17th-placed finishes and a summer spending spree exceeding £237 million on players including Jan Paul van Hecke, Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes, expectations had risen considerably at the club. However, Spurs were thoroughly outplayed by neighbours Brentford in a 3-0 defeat, despite fielding several of their marquee signings alongside Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi. Supporter Mark voiced his skepticism about the club's direction: "Let's face it: Spurs have been through so many false dawns in the Premier League era that the only difference this time was the ludicrous amounts of money they've spent in the summer transfer window."
West Ham United, meanwhile, are experiencing turbulence in the Championship following relegation from the Premier League after a 14-year top-flight stay. Manager Nuno Espirito Santo's side had been tipped for an immediate return, having broken the division's transfer record to sign Arne Engels and adding Manor Solomon, Joel Piroe and Divine Mukasa to the squad. Instead, the Hammers have collected just one point from their opening two matches, squandering a two-goal lead against Burnley before losing 2-1 at home to Charlton. Fan frustration has already boiled over, with supporter Les questioning the manager's future: "Will someone put Nuno out of his misery. He got the tactics wrong last season and is doing the same thing again."
Across the border, Rangers supporters are also enduring an unsettling start under new manager Derek McInnes, who joined from Hearts and brought captain Lawrence Shankland with him after an extensive summer rebuild involving 11 new signings. The Ibrox club suffered Europa League qualifying elimination against Jagiellonia Bialystok and have managed just one point from their opening two Scottish Premiership fixtures against Dundee United and Hibernian. McInnes has already faced boos from his own supporters, with long-time fan Graeme lamenting: "I have been watching Rangers for over 60 years and this is the worst team I have ever seen."
With the season still in its infancy, these clubs face early pressure to turn things around before patience among their fanbases wears any thinner.
Based on reporting from BBC Sport.