A rampant Brighton destroyed a pitiful Manchester United 4-0 at home on Saturday, shattering the Red Devils’ hopes of playing Champions League football next season.
Brighton, who went into the game having won just three of their home games thus far, started in a far superior fashion than United, and their dominance of the opening minutes of the game saw 20-year-old Moises Caicedo put his team in front through a well-taken debut goal from distance.
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While Brighton dominated the ball in the first half, and created several more clear cut chances, they were not clinical in front of goal and the half ended 1-0.
The home side’s 1-0 advantage did not spur a seemingly frustrated United to life in the second half either, and Marc Cucurella capitalised on the away side’s lack of motivation and coordination to put Brighton 2-0 up in the 49th minute.
The second goal did not bring United back to their senses either, and Ralf Rangnick’s men went on to concede more as the clock ticked on.
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In the 57th minute, Leandro Trossard, driving up United’s third, found Pascal Groß in the United box, and the Belgian expertly dribbled past Rafael Varane to put Brighton three ahead.
Less than five minutes later, Trossard scored to put the game beyond any doubt.
Although United, still reeling from the shock of going 4-0 down, tried mounting a comeback, a couple of important saves by Brighton goalie Robert Sanchez and a disallowed goal due to offside saw Brighton comfortably wrap up the 3 points.
The win marked Brighton’s first home win since the turn of the year, and their fourth home win this season.
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The 3 points took Brighton to ninth in the Premier League table, and with two games remaining, Graham Potter and his men may well manage a top-half finish.
United, on the other hand, remain sixth with 58 points, with fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur having 61 points and three games in hand.
