by On Saturday, Brighton defeated Manchester United 2-1 thanks to a header from Joao Pedro in the 95th minute, giving 31-year-old manager Fabian Hurzeler the perfect home Premier League debut.
After Danny Welbeck’s first-half goal for Brighton was cancelled out by a deflected effort from Amad Diallo, United appeared to have stolen a point. If Alejandro Garnacho’s shot had not gone past teammate Joshua Zirkzee, who was in an offside position, just before the ball crossed the line, the visitors might have even won.
Instead, Brighton has won both of its first two games under Hurzeler, with Pedro scoring a header in stoppage time after going entirely unmarked. Brighton now have a maximum of six points from both games.
The loss returns attention to United manager Erik ten Hag, as Liverpool is scheduled to play at Old Trafford the following weekend. Ten Hag’s FA Cup victory allowed them to survive the conclusion of the previous season, despite their eighth-place Premier League finish.
Zirkzee’s late goal gave the former Ajax boss a much-needed 1-0 victory against Fulham to start the season last weekend. However, United’s performances in their opening two league games of the new season have not exactly raised expectations for a significant uptick from a disappointing 2023–24 campaign.
Ten Hag stuck with the starting lineup from the match against Fulham, using Zirkzee and Garnacho once more exclusively as impact substitutes. In Hurzeler’s first game in command, Brighton destroyed Everton 3-0 on the road, demonstrating that they will be a strong contender to return to European competition the following season.
After Kaoru Mitoma slid the ball back across goal for Welbeck to tap in for his 100th career goal and Harry Maguire failed to clear a dangerous cross, the Seagulls seized the lead on thirty-two minutes.
After Jason Steele expertly stopped Marcus Rashford’s early shot, the visitors believed they were level in just a few seconds. The England international was denied, though, the offside flag.
After the interval, Brighton flew out of the traps but was unable to extend their lead. Before Welbeck headed off the bar, Diogo Dalot cleared an attempt by James Milner.
Before Diallo raced forward, cut inside onto his left foot, and found the net after deflecting a shot off Jan Paul van Hecke, United had hardly been in the Brighton half since the restart. Before the half, Zirkzee had come on in place of Mason Mount, but after making a valiant debut, the Dutchman was responsible for what could have been a second United goal.
Bruno Fernandes was fed by Diallo during a ferocious counterattack, and Garnacho struck a low cross goalward. Zirkzee’s knee was clipped by the ball as it entered, though, and a VAR review determined that the forward was offside.
That turned out to be the game-changing goal, as Brighton scored the third and final goal. Pedro effortlessly drew away from Scott McTominay and Matthijs de Ligt to find the room to head back across Andre Onana into the far corner, raising questions about United’s defense.
