Brighton 2-1 Manchester United: Seagulls continue perfect start

CUE inquest No 1 in Manchester United’s season. You get the impression it won’t be the last.

There was almost an air of inevitability about it all when Joao Pedro slammed home a header in the 95th minute as Brighton maintained their perfect start to the season.

Hope springs eternal at this part of the season. Fans believe things can be different; that their team’s faults have been rectified and ironed out.

Well for United it seems a case of same old, same old.

Having clawed their way back into the game after Brighton, albeit against the run of play, took a first half lead through former United striker Danny Welbeck - Ten Hag's side inexplicably threw it all away in the dying seconds following some of the most horrendous defending you are likely to see this weekend.

It’s all a familiar feeling for United. That sinking feeling. The optimism garnered from last weekend’s opening day win over Fulham gone in flash.

But even then, Joshua Zirkzee’s late winner papered over the cracks of what was an insipid display against Marco Silva’s team.

The cracks have been left exposed this weekend. That should worry Ten Hag.

Yet, the Dutchman would likely look to his team’s first half display for reasons to be positive.

That would would have credence, United were unfortunate to find themselves at half time.

As Ten Hag darted towards the tunnel at the break, he may have found difficulty in finding the words.

His team were good and unlucky to be in deficit. Winger Amad Diallo was dangerous, Casemiro looked lea, Bruno Fernandes - in a false nine role - caused problems, as did Marcus Rashford down the left.

All that was really lacking was the finishing touch.

Diallo was guilty of their clearest miss in the 10th minute, spurning a golden opportunity at the back post following Diogo Dalot’s delicious cross from the left.

Casemiro headed over before Diallo’s dreadful pass towards Rashford wasted a promising three versus two counter attack on the half hour mark.

What followed two minutes later would have arrived as an immense frustration to Ten Hag.

It was Welbeck who stabbed home at the back post from Kaoru Mitoma’s pass.

But it was Joao Pedro’s dangerous cross from the right, coupled with Harry Maguire’s perplexing decision not to at least try to deal with it, that proved United’s undoing.

And despite United’s supremacy, Brighton’s lead didn’t represented a comprehensive injustice.

Well-organised and drilled within an inch of their lives, the first impressions of their new boss Fabian Hurzeler are encouraging.

Last weekend’s comfortable win at Everton and now this. They have a knack of unearthing coaching gems round these parts.

They may have done it again here with Hurzeler.

But credit to United, they continued to assert control. Rashford bundled the ball over the line in the 34th minute from Diallo’s cross only for the effort to be marginally ruled out for offside via VAR before Jason Steele saved Mason Mount’s effort from the edge of the box.

That was Mount’s final meaningful contribution to proceedings as Ten Hag hooked him in place of Zirkzee at half-time.

Mount may disagree but it was a necessary change. United lacked a focal point in attack, the Dutchman - all 6ft 4ins of him - certainly offered United that.

But the change knocked United off their stride. James Milner passed up two good opportunities, the second in particularly guild-edged and required Dalot to clear off the line.

Welbeck was next to be be wasteful, heading straight at Andre Onana from Yankuba Minteh’s cross.

United’s fluency had somehow vanished into thin air. Brighton, all of a sudden, were into ascendancy.

Welbeck then sent a towering header from Milner’s cross onto the cross bar as United continue to buckle.

So, according to the how the first half unfolded, you could predict what was to happen.

United's leveller arrived on the hour mark as Diallo, collecting a pass from Noussair Mazraoui powered down the right ahead of cutting inside Jack Hinshelwood before firing past Steele.

The goal owed significantly to a deflection off Jan Paul van Hecke, but it would be cruel to take this strike away from the United youngster following a traumatic 24 hours.

Diallo insisted he wanted to play here at the Amex despite revealing that his stepmother had passed away earlier in the week.

Ten Hag will have been grateful his young winger showed such fortitude. It’s a shame his team-mates couldn’t have shown the same sort of mettle in the closing stages.

Rashford departed the field in place of Alejandro Garnacho shortly after the goal as Ten Hag went for the kill.

It nearly proved a masterstroke. Diallo, again, proved a menace down the right before playing a deliciously timed pass into Fernandes’ path.

The United skipper found Garnacho at the back post; the Argentine appearing to fire visitors ahead.

But the substitute’s effort took the faintest of touches off Zirkzee on the line as the Holland star slid in towards goal.

If the ball hadn’t clipped Zirkzee then the goal would have stood via a VAR call. It was brutal for United as was the game’s climax.

United only have themselves to blame. Their failure to clear a corner eventually saw the excellent Billy Gilmour recycle the ball on the edge of the area with a clever pass into Simon Adingra.

The winger’s back post cross was sumptuous. In contrast, United’s marking was abysmal.

Pedro gobbled up the opportunity with a powerful header at the back post as the Amex exploded.

You’d imagine Ten Hag was erupting, too, but for entirely different reasons.