Brighton vs Manchester United Review
João Pedro’s header in the 95th minute clinched a 2-1 victory for Brighton at the Amex Stadium, marking their fifth win in six encounters against Man United. Both teams began the season with wins last weekend, but Brighton’s 3-0 victory over Everton was more impressive than United’s narrow win against Fulham.
The home team started strong on the South Coast, with João Pedro’s weak shot from outside the box being the first attempt of the match around the 10-minute mark. The Red Devils played solidly but without flair, and Amad Diallo missed a great opportunity at the back post after receiving an excellent cross from Diogo Dalot. After 31 minutes, a well-placed ball reached Kaoru Mitoma at the back post, and he delivered a low cross that was tapped in by Danny Welbeck to give the home side the lead.
Shortly after, Erik ten Hag’s team thought they had equalized, but Marcus Rashford was offside when he scored on his second attempt from close range. For the remainder of the first half, United struggled to create chances and continued to be outplayed at the start of the second half. They were nearly two goals down when Welbeck hit the crossbar with a close-range header. Eventually, the visitors began to demonstrate their quality and equalized with about 30 minutes left. A smart through ball from Noussair Mazraoui found Diallo, who cut inside and scored with a deflection off Jan Paul Van Hecke.
Both teams pressed on in their quest for a winning goal, and a crucial moment nearly arrived after a fast-paced exchange. Brighton had a numerical advantage in the attacking zone, but Yankuba Minteh’s poor choices allowed United to launch a counterattack. Although they managed to score again when substitute Joshua Zirkzee deflected Alejandro Garnacho’s shot into an empty net, the goal was disallowed because Zirkzee was offside at the time, a disappointing turn of events for Ten Hag and his team, especially since Garnacho’s original shot would have scored anyway.
The match continued in a similar fashion, with neither side able to find the finishing touch, until Pedro headed in Adingra’s chipped pass unmarked, igniting celebrations among the home fans. This marks a perfect start for new Brighton manager Fabian Hürzeler with two wins from two matches, while Ten Hag will be frustrated by his team’s failure to hold on in the closing moments of the game.
