London - Leicester City's Premier League title defence got off to an embarrassing start as the champ crashed to a shock 2-1 defeat at troubled Hull City in the opening match of the season on Saturday.
Hull's Robert Snodgrass slotted a composed finish beyond a lunging Kasper Schmeichel a dozen minutes after the interval to lead a makeshift Tigers' side to a stunning victory.
With the loss, Leicester becomes the first reigning Premier League champ to lose in its opening fixture the following season. The Foxes are the first side to drop the opening match on the heels of a title since Arsenal did so in 1989-90.
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Just three months after its astonishing title triumph, Claudio Ranieri's side was brought back down to earth by a team whose preparations for the new campaign were marred by the resignation of manager Steve Bruce and its failure to sign a single player.
Adama Diomande scored the opener a minute before the interval after he and teammate Abel Hernandez acrobatically rose to meet a rebound parried away by Schmeichel following a stunning save on a Curtis Davies header.
The Foxes drew level moments after the break when Mike Dean wrongly adjudged Tom Huddlestone of fouling Demarai Gray in the area. Last season's PFA Player of the Year Riyad Mahrez buried the equaliser from the spot. Game on.
With N'Golo Kante gone to Chelsea, Ranieri's lot appeared limp in the midfield, and Andy King did little to fill the void left vacant by the French international while Danny Drinkwater had little influence on proceedings. Ahmed Musa impressed on his debut, and Jamie Vardy was afforded plenty of opportunities only for summer's rust to keep the England international off the scoresheet.
Albeit a small sample size, last year's triumphs appear distant, as a side noted for its teamwork was a fractured collection of individuals Saturday at the KC Stadium.
"I told the players we need to be strong together. Last season we were a great team, but today we played individually," Ranieri conceded.
After just three defeats in 38 league tilts last season, Leicester now has one loss in one match.
- with files from Agence France-Presse
