SHE'S BAA-AAACKK!!

But not exactly with a bang, it must be said (in case you were wondering, the she is football). After the World Cup ended over a month ago, our attention has been fixed on the return of domestic football and in particular, the Premier League. The anticipation has been dramatically increasing for weeks leading up to it, (Sky Sports News even brought in their new swanky office to welcome the new season in). Needless to say our expectations were at an all-time high; we were in for something great...

Did ya miss me?

The reality however, was much more underwhelming. The opening weekend brought a few controversies and a couple of bright performances here and there, but apart from that, it was kind of business as usual for a lot of the teams. When thinking about the difference between expectation and reality, a couple of clubs spring to mind...

Man United
Obviously the shock of the weekend (well, kinda). All summer long whilst Holland was playing in the World Cup all we heard from practically every single commentator was that Man United fans have someone to look forward to in Van Gaal. His stern character and decisiveness (do you remember when he brought on the 2nd choice goalkeeper just for the penalty shoot-out?) is reminiscent of Sir Alex. His arrival brought this new wave expectation to Old Trafford, and after the debacle that was last season, this year was going to be different right? Wrong.
It seems that everyone was so focused on the incoming manager, that they took their eye off of what is still a really poor United side. The defeat to Swansea on Saturday just summed it all up. The most entertaining part of their lacklustre performance was a bird pooing in Ashley Young's mouth. If one thing's for sure, it's going to take some time before the ghosts of last season are completely shaken off and Old Trafford returns to being the fortress it once was. After all, Rome wasn't built in a day.

Bad Day at the Office: Man United slump to a 2-1 defeat against Swansea

Arsenal
There is talk of this supposed optimism around the club and a general "feel-good factor" as a result of the club securing their first pieces of silverware in 9 years, with triumph in the FA Cup and the Community Shield, sending the Champions Man City to a comfortable 3-nil defeat. To make matters worse (or better, depending on how you look at it), Arsenal secured a big-money signing in Chilean superstar Alexis Sanchez, along with wonder kid Calum Chambers. Now that was sure to send expectations through the roof.
Unfortunately for Arsenal fans(I being one of them), the performance against Crystal Palace over the weekend carried with it a familiar feeling of different season, same old Arsenal. We still seem to be carrying the problems from previous seasons, one of them being our apparent inability to score without passing the ball 300 million times first! Luckily,we still managed to scrape the 2-1 (only just!), but the game did expose some of Arsenal's weaknesses that must certainly be addressed before the season gets into full swing.

Left it late: Arsenal celebrating Ramsey's last minute winner

There are other teams I could mention (eg. Newcastle and their new signings, Liverpool and life after Suarez), but we'd be here all day. 
On another note I'd like to welcome the new boys QPR, Leicester and Burnley to the Premier League party! None of them managed to win over the weekend, but that's okay, let's call this your initiation period. 

As for the rest, I'm sure the league as a whole will liven up and progress from a relatively cagey opening weekend, as players get used to playing regular domestic football again. As a football fan I certainly hope so!

So what do you think? Were you also underwhelmed by the opening weekend, or did you feel it lived up to expectations? Let me know!