Report: United 1 Brighton 3

Sunday 19 January 2025 16:20

Manchester United suffered a frustrating first defeat of 2025 as Brighton & Hove Albion left Old Trafford with three points in the Premier League on Sunday.

It was a poignant winter's afternoon at Old Trafford as tributes were paid to Denis Law ahead of kick-off, honouring the passing of the King of the Stretford End.

But where United had come from behind to beat Southampton in M16 three days earlier, the Reds were never able to get in front in this one. Yankuba Minteh put the visitors into a quick lead, before Bruno Fernandes cancelled out that advantage from the penalty spot.

Second-half strikes from Kaoru Mitoma and Brighton substitute Georginio Rutter were ultimately then the difference in the end, with United struggling to create anything of note after the break.

Denis Law was honoured with a poem and applause before kick-off.

FIRST HALF - REDS RESPOND

Less than two minutes were on the clock before Brighton threatened, Joao Pedro winning the ball high up the pitch and forcing Andre Onana to parry. Before the game, Ruben Amorim had also warned of the danger posed by speedy Seagulls winger Mitoma and the Japan international soon proved the source of the early breakthrough. He raced onto a lofted pass over the top, before squaring to Minteh for a straightforward finish, even if Onana managed to get a touch to it.

United settled into the game following the setback of falling behind so early and enjoyed more of the ball. There were some moments of attacking promise through the opening quarter, although Manuel Ugarte's shot from an inviting position was well charged down and Fernandes didn't fully connect with a square ball into the box after good work on the right from Amad.

That pressure soon paid off when Amad forced a mistake as Brighton attempted to play out from the back. The loose ball fell kindly to Joshua Zirkzee, but a desperate move from Carlos Baleba saw the Brighton midfielder grab our No.11 round the back of his neck to give away a penalty. Fernandes confidently stepped up to send Bart Verbruggen the wrong way from 12 yards.

Into the latter stages of the first half, the overall impressive Zirkzee earned rapturous applause from the crowd as he showcased exceptional centre-forward ability, initially holding the ball up with his back to goal near the halfway line, before beating two defenders and switching the play to open up the rest of the pitch for his team-mates to run into. It wasn't an isolated moment either, offering a strong focal point to plenty of United attacks.

Both sides had a further glimpse of goal shortly before the break. First, Amad was sent through one-on-one, with Verbruggen doing just enough to force him wide - a marginal offside flag would have ruled it out had the ball found the net, though. Then, Diogo Dalot did well to track the run of Danny Welbeck and block the close-range attempt from the ex-United forward.

Bruno had equalised from the penalty spot in the first half.

SECOND HALF - SEAGULLS TAKE THE POINTS

Looking for a goal, United began the second period brightly, Amad seeing a powerful strike well blocked by Brighton captain Lewis Dunk after driving into the box. The Seagulls then looked to have retaken the lead when Joao Pedro squirmed free and fired into the net, but VAR highlighted a foul on Dalot from Jan Paul van Hecke as our wing-back was attempting to clear the danger. Referee Peter Bankes consulted the pitchside monitor and ruled out the goal.

On the hour mark, Brighton found the net again and it stood. Yasin Ayari managed to run into space through midfield, laying the ball off to Minteh on the right. His in-swinging clipped ball towards the far post was met by the stretching Mitoma just ahead of Noussair Mazraoui, who collided painfully with the upright in the process.

Joshua Zirkzee impressed on an otherwise difficult afternoon.

With 15 minutes of the 90 left, Brighton had van Hecke to thank for preserving their lead when he blocked a goalbound effort from Zirkzee, again after strong wide play from Amad. That proved even more pivotal, mere moments later, when Brighton extended their lead in opportunistic circumstances. Onana was unable to keep hold of Ayari's low cross, with the ball falling at the feet of Rutter. The substitute was composed enough to sidestep Onana, with Matthijs de Ligt's last-ditch efforts not enough to keep the ball out of the net.

Late rolls of the dice saw Rasmus Hojlund and Antony both enter the game, joining earlier substitutes Alejandro Garnacho and Toby Collyer on the pitch. United tried to find a way back into it during the eight minutes of stoppage time signalled by the officials, although Verbruggen's goal ultimately remained largely unthreatened.

MATCH DETAILS

United: Onana; Yoro, Maguire, De Ligt; Mazraoui (Antony 84), Ugarte (Collyer 64), Mainoo (Garnacho 64), Dalot; Amad, Fernandes (c); Zirkzee (Hojlund 84).

Subs not used: Bayindir, Malacia, Martinez, Casemiro, Eriksen.

Goal: Fernandes 23 (pen).

Booked: Ugarte 61, Maguire 90+5, Yoro 90+8.

Brighton: Verbruggen; Veltman, Van Hecke, Dunk (c), Estupinan (Lamptey 84); Baleba (Gomez 90+5), Ayari; Minteh (March 69), Joao Pedro (Enciso 90+5), Mitoma; Welbeck (Rutter 69).

Subs not used: Steele, McConville, Webster, Adingra.

Goals: Minteh 5, Mitoma 60, Rutter 76.

Booked: Baleba 21, Minteh 43, March 90+8.

Attendance: 73,758.

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