Extending their recent turn of fortune, Manchester United rocketed towards the Champions League places by securing a thrilling 4-2 win against Brighton at Old Trafford.
Looking to use last weekend’s famous 2-1 win at Liverpool as an important platform to build on, Ruben Amorim’s men were quick to open the scoring when summer signing Matheus Cunha opened his United account midway through the first half.
With a revived mood at Old Trafford, United doubled their lead just 10 minutes later when former Real Madrid ace Casemiro saw his deflected effort find a way past Brighton stopper Bart Verbruggen.
With another summer recruit, Bryan Mbeumo, adding a third just after the hour, all signs pointed to United being in complete control.
However, seeing former United striker Danny Welbeck produce a sublime free-kick in the final 15 minutes, Brighton set up a grandstand finish when Charalampos Kostoulas headed a near-post header in injury time.
Although the atmosphere at Old Trafford could have changed dramatically, Mbeumo scored his second of the night as the former Brentford star led United to a third successive top-flight victory.
As for Brighton, who are still hoping to record back-to-back Premier League wins since the new campaign opened, the Seagulls finish Saturday’s matches in 13th place and are still searching for crucial stability.
On a night when Manchester United extended their recent stellar run, we take a look at the main talking points from Old Trafford.
United on the rise
Closing out September with a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Brentford, it was reported in some quarters that Amorim could be replaced during the October international break.
However, while the former Sporting Lisbon boss may have come under a lot of scrutiny since arriving at Old Trafford 11 months ago, United are certainly enjoying by far their most fruitful spell of the Amorim era.
Marking their return from the fortnight interval with a sensational last-gasp 2-1 victory over historic rivals Liverpool last weekend, the Red Devils have rocketed up the Premier League table and the mood in their camp is at a memorable high.
Beating Brighton by four here and making a real statement of intent, United have now won their previous three consecutive appearances by an aggregate score of 8-3.
Likewise, with 12 points on the scoreboard in their last five top-flight games, Amorim’s men have rocketed towards the Champions League places.
Cunha and Mbeumo show their value
With just 44 goals in the Premier League last season and with only one club finishing outside the relegation zone registering fewer top-flight goals, it was no secret that Amorim was desperate to complete a major attacking overhaul over the summer.
Seeing Rasmus Hojlund complete a loan move to Napoli and Alejandro Garnacho finally secure a permanent move to Chelsea, the United hierarchy spent a combined sum in the region of £200m on Cunha, Mbeumo and Slovenian international Benjamin Sesko.
Although United’s new attacking trio might have initially struggled to find any real immediate chemistry, they are certainly firing on all cylinders now.
Watching Cunha open his Manchester United account in the first half here, Mbeumo is quickly cementing his place as one of the Premier League’s summer signings.
Mbeumo, who scored a stylish brace at Old Trafford and received a flurry of applause from Amorim after Sunday’s 4-2 victory in the red half of Manchester, has recorded five direct goal contributions in as many appearances for club and country.
Inconsistencies haunt Brighton again
While Brighton may have fallen short last season in the race to book another famous European adventure, the Seagulls opened the process in August confident of mounting another genuine charge.
However, despite marking their return from the October fortnight interval with an eye-catching 2-1 home win against Newcastle, Fabian Hurzeler’s side have shown some prolonged inconsistencies.
Despite closing out September with a stunning comeback in west London as they powered their way to a 3-1 win at Chelsea, Saturday’s guests have failed to record consecutive Premier League wins since opening the 2025/26 campaign.
Once again sitting in the bottom half of the table, Brighton also know the importance of finding some crucial defensive steel.
With a quartet of goals here for the second time so far this calendar year, the Seagulls have also failed to record a single clean sheet in any of their first nine Premier League appearances.
Match report
Manchester United: Lammens, Yoro, de Ligt, Shaw, Dalot, Diallo, Casemiro, Fernandes, Mbeumo, Cunha, Sesko
Substitutes: Dorgu, Mainoo, Cielo, Zirkzee, Ugarte
Brighton: Verbruggen, Wieffer, van Hecke, Dunk, Kadioglu, Ayari, Baleba, Minteh, Rutter, De Cuyper, Welbeck
Substitutes: Kostoulas, Milner, Gómez, Watson, Tzimas
Goals: Manchester United: Cunha (24′), Casemiro (34′), Mbeumo (61′, 90+6′) – Brighton: Welbeck (74′), Kostoulas (90+2′)
Yellow Cards: Manchester United: Sesko, Dorgu – Brighton: Baleba, Kadioglu
Red cards: N/A
Referee: Antonio Taylor
