Manchester United suffered their sixth home defeat of the Premier League season against Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday.
Yankuba Minteh gave the visitors an early lead, but a Bruno Fernandes penalty midway through the first half appeared to have given United the platform they needed to go on and take all three points.
But in the chaotic second half, Kaoru Mitoma scored at the back post before a big mistake from goalkeeper Andre Onana gave Georginio Rutter the third goal to seal an eventful 3-1 win.
How the game developed
It took Brighton just four minutes to score. Carlos Baleba’s wonderful long ball across the goal line put Kaoru Mitoma on goal, and the Japan international selflessly laid the ball off to Minteh, who turned it into an open net.
United quickly took control of possession and the likes of Amad Diallo and Diogo Dalot had some dangerous moments on the wings before Bruno Fernandes shot wide from the edge of the box.
Two penalty shots came and went before United finally got a penalty on the third occasion. Brighton were caught out by the home side’s pressing and Baleba eventually tackled Joshua Zirkzee to the ground, and Fernandes made no mistake from 12 meters and deservedly equalized.
Amad appeared to score the second goal when he rounded Bart Verbruggen, but the young striker narrowed the angle and was unable to give United the lead heading into the break.
As in the first half, Brighton found the back of the net at the start of the second half. A pinball in the penalty area saw the ball fall at the feet of the accidental Joao Pedro, who, realizing what was actually happening, flung the ball beyond the advancing Andre Onana. The VAR reviewed the footage and discovered Jan Paul van Hecke’s foul on Dalot, ruling out the goal.
However, there would be no salvation for United after the hour mark. Minteh’s cross landed straight at the back post, where Mitoma had to stretch to get into the net.
Rutter had a chance to score the third goal with 15 minutes left after a big mistake by Onana. Somehow the United stopper fired a routine cross into the box and substitute Brighton could hardly believe his luck as he tapped into the empty net.
Check out Man Utd 1-3 Brighton player ratings here.
United were good in the first half and responded well to the initial setback, but once Brighton actually gained control of the action in the second half, the Red Devils clearly lost their focus.
They were fortunate to avoid going behind through Joao Pedro’s disallowed goal, but Brighton kept coming and capitalized on their momentum when Mitoma popped up at the back post and restored the Seagulls’ lead.
Things became slow and predictable for United as they became too easy to play against before Onana’s error dashed any hopes of a resurgence of optimism. Ruben Amorim must find a solution to this mentality problem.
Deployed here as an attacking midfielder, Amad made it a point to help the team as much as possible and his defensive work stood out, as did everything he did with the ball at his feet.
It was his high pressing that led to the penalty before he saw two of his own calls turned away, and there were several moments where Amad was able to help his full-back at the other end of the pitch.
Amad continued to be his lively self in the future. He caused plenty of problems on the right wing and seemed as likely as anyone in red to get into the net from play.
There was simply no need for United to concede a third goal here. The cross into Onana was slow, tame and exactly what he was supposed to catch with his eyes closed, and yet somehow he spilled it into the worst position imaginable.
Mistakes are part of football – of course they are – but Onana had made them too much of a habit during his time in England and United are in no position to rely on a goalkeeper capable of such chaotic moments.
It is expected that a goalkeeper will be added to the transfer wish list in 2025. Amorim will only be able to withstand so much of this.
Few who have seen Baleba have ever questioned his ability with the ball. That was clear from the first minute, when Mitoma hit the backside with his wonderful long ball and opened the scoring. Really sensational stuff.
What the young midfielder needs to work on, however, is his concentration and composure. His penchant for giving away penalties led to him clotheslining Zirkzee to concede the penalty, which United equalized. One of those moments where he just has to shake off his game.
To his credit, Baleba then rose to the challenge of leading his team back to dominance. His ball recovery was great and United just couldn’t keep up. He seems technically ready for a big move but could perhaps benefit from a bit more time to develop his mentality at Brighton.