Man Utd win by minimum thanks to own goal

Ashley Young is happy to help Man Utd get all three points

Goal: Dunk (own goal) 66'

Man Utd halted the downward spiral following their 1-0 defeat to Basel in midweek with a narrow win over Brighton, with defender Lewis Dunk scoring the only goal of the game as he tried to block Ashley Young's shot from outside the box.

The Old Trafford team completed their goal of getting all three points, but the way they overcame Brighton was unconvincing. Their incoherent attacking play and few scoring opportunities made fans continue to doubt Jose Mourinho's team's ability to catch up with Man City.

Man Utd achieved their aim of three points but their victory was unconvincing

The Portuguese coach kept the same line-up as in the 4-1 win over Newcastle a week ago, with the attacking trio of Anthony Martial, Juan Mata and Marcus Rashford playing behind Romelu Lukaku. The formation is strong in theory, but the Old Trafford side failed to show it against the Premier League newcomers this season.

In the first 45 minutes, the Reds controlled nearly 65% ​​of the ball, had three more shots than their opponents, but most of them were not dangerous. In the third minute, Lukaku passed the ball in the middle, then moved the ball to his strong left foot. However, the former Everton player's subsequent shot was too inaccurate.

Man Utd's main attack in the first half was through headers. However, against the 1.90m tall central defender duo of Shane Duffy and Lewis Dunk, Mourinho's plan was ineffective.

Man Utd's most dangerous situation in the first half was Lukaku's close-range header and Pogba's follow-up shot.

The home team's most notable moment came in the final minute of the first half. Rashford crossed the ball from the right wing, right at Lukaku's position. The Belgian striker finished from close range from less than 5 meters away, but could not beat goalkeeper Mat Ryan. Paul Pogba's follow-up shot also failed to put the ball in the net.

Brighton took the initiative with their play, and it was the visitors who surprised Man Utd in the second half when they pushed forward and created threats towards David De Gea's goal. In the 47th minute, the Reds almost scored from a set-up and cross on the right wing. Luckily for the home team, no player from the visitors could take advantage.

Mourinho was impatient on the sidelines and he brought on Zlatan Ibrahimovic to replace Mata, who had not played well in more than an hour on the pitch. Four minutes later, Man Utd opened the scoring.

Ashley Young's lucky shot

...and the emotional goal celebration of the English veteran

From a corner kick on the right wing, the ball was not cleared decisively by the away team. Young rushed forward, took position, and immediately shot with his left foot. The ball hit centre-back Lewis Dunk's foot, changed direction, and flew into the top corner of the goal, leaving Ryan no time to react.

Despite the goal, Man Utd's attack did not improve, despite Mourinho bringing on Henrik Mkhitaryan. Brighton had few chances to score, but the Premier League newcomer's attacks were potentially dangerous. With luck, they could have beaten De Gea twice, in the 75th and 85th minutes, after breakthroughs and crosses from the left.

The opposition were unlucky, but Man Utd were no better. Mourinho switched to a 4-3-3 formation in the last 15 minutes, with Ibrahimovic as the central player. However, the only mark the veteran Swede left was a toe-poke that sent the ball wide of the post in the 88th minute, after a back-and-forth with Pogba.

Ibrahimovic has not scored any goals since recovering from injury

With a narrow win, Man Utd temporarily reduced the gap with Man City to five points. They also cut the "tail" of Tottenham, because in the match at the same time, Harry Kane and his teammates were held to a 1-1 draw by West Brom.

According to VNE