Manchester United have won three straight in the Premier League.
The Reds secured three points at Old Trafford again on Saturday with a 4-2 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, producing a comprehensive first-half display and adding two more to finish the job against a late push from the south coast visitors.
Ruben Amorim was without the services of Harry Maguire after taking a knock in training this week, and Mason Mount was fit but rode the bench at the start with Benjamin Sesko getting pack into the starting
XI.
Though the new striker didn’t touch the ball until midway through the first half, United came out looking much the better team. From the opening seconds, the Reds were looking forward, and Bryan Mbeumo set up Bruno Fernandes after just 30 seconds.
Chances for Matheus Cunha followed in the next minutes, and Senne Lammens had to spring into action as well, but United would open the scoring through their Brazilian No. 10 in the 24th minute.
Sesko did well to hold up a chance and try to send Mbeumo through, but the ball was returned to the top of the 18-yard box. Casemiro reset play, and played a slick pass to Cunha on his left. He took one touch and fired a well-placed shot past Verbruggen for 1-0.
Casemiro would bag one for himself before halftime, getting a gift of a deflection on his effort from a similar position to see the ball roll past a helpless Verbruggen.
United resumed the attack in the second half, and finally broke through with a goal for Mbeumo, set up by Diogo Dalot and Sesko. The Portuguese wing-back pounced on a loose ball to feed the forward, who turned and saw Mbeumo in space to the right. The first touch upon receiving was a bit lacking, but set the ball up for a strike on his preferred left foot, and soon it was 3-0.
From there, it should have been a straightforward job to see things through, but the visitors had to go and make things interesting. Danny Welbeck converted a fantastic free kick attempt to ruin the clean sheet, and then Kostoulas glanced in a near-post header on a corner routine to put the pressure on United in stoppage time.
To put things to bed, Mbeumo fired in a fourth for United on the end of a pass from Kobbie Mainoo, adding his third goal in two weeks and giving the Stretford End reason to smile again before the end.
It wasn’t a thorough, dominant performance as a 3-0 scoreline could have reflected, but it was still a deserved win and a big positive compared to performances early this season. The execution is beginning to show, and maybe soon that guy can cut his hair.
On to Forest next.
