Brighton vs Man United | Three Crucial Lessons Learnt From the Game

For Manchester United, the 2021-22 season can be summed up well from their last two games – a solid 3-0 win against Brentford and then a humiliating 4-0 loss away at Brighton. The trophy-less season is a fitting reminder for United that the team has fallen behind massively in terms of quality and consistency.

The return of Cristiano Ronaldo promised a lot more for the fans and he seems to have done everything possible to bring the side back to its former glory. This was one of Brighton’s biggest Premier League wins since promotion in 2017 and are closer to their highest placing in the Premier League table.

The Seagulls started the match with a lot of intensity and pressure, putting United’s defence on the backfoot. They controlled possession despite not testing De Gea early in the game. But the breakthrough came finally through Moises Caicedo, who placed a long distance shot to the bottom-left corner.

The second half followed a similar pattern, with Brighton crowding near the United penalty area. Leandro Trossard then found some space in between the defence to set up Cucurella for the second. The Red Devils brought on Fred and Cavani to provide a slight chance to the visitors.

Cavani and Bruno got a few shots to test keeper Robert Sanchez, but at no point looked like scoring even a goal. The match was sealed with two quick goals from Pascal Gross and Trossard. After the Brentford result, it would be difficult to imagine this outcome but Rangnick’s men seem to surprise their fans every time.

1. The United Squad Lacks Consistency

United registered their fifth successive Premier League away defeat at Brighton. Throughout this season, the team has been unable to maintain a consistent run of victories across all competitions. Players like Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford and Harry Maguire have showed glimpses of their quality in certain games but failed to replicate the same for the whole season.

United’s rivals Manchester City and Liverpool have consistently collected more than 90 points a season while United are falling behind by each campaign. The team has a crop of players who know what it means to play at Old Trafford and are very passionate; giving everything on the pitch in certain games. But the issue is that the Premier League season tests the team’s endurance and ability to perform consistently well in 38 games.

2. The Red Devils Have Registered Their Worst Defensive Record And Points Tally In The Premier League Era

The 2021-22 campaign is officially United’s worst of the Premier League era. They have conceded 56 goals and still have a game left. This season will also be a blackmark for United’s lowest points tally with a maximum of 64 points possible.

Varane and Maguire — Image obtained via: CaughtOffside

United have tried 5-6 different defensive pairings this season for the centre-back position. They have to clear out Eric Bailly, Phil Jones and loanees like Axel Tuanzebe before trying to buy proven defenders from Europe like Pau Torres, Jules Kounde and Jurrien Timber. Erik ten Hag has a lot of work ahead of him and has to start a fresh rebuild by clearing out the unwanted players piled up from previous managers.

3. Manchester United Have To Spend Heavily On The Squad In The Summer

Cristiano Ronaldo had five attempts and could not hit a single one on target. This shows the team’s reliance on Ronaldo’s goals and the struggle when he is having an off day. The United squad continues to struggle due to poor recruitment. They seem to make signings in positions which do not require immediate improvement while ignoring the bigger problems in defence and midfield. The signings are usually made one transfer window later from when the manager requests the board. Subsequently, a new problem area turns up and the cycle continues.

This coming transfer window, United need some heavy spending with rivals City, Liverpool and Chelsea all expected to get in reinforcements. Karim Adeyemi, Kalvin Philips, Frenkie De Jong, Jude Bellingham and Darwin Nunez are all part of the initial shortlist. They have to spend in all areas of the team this window to have a chance of winning a trophy next season.

United have become a commercial club with signings made just to improve finances and all the deals made as per business needs like shirt sales, dividends and commercials. This is slowly deteriorating the club and a toxic atmosphere has developed between the board and fans.

It will be the fifth time in 30 years that they will not play in the Champions League and they could even miss out on the Europa League, dropping into the third-tier Europa Conference League.

Ralf Rangnick commented after the Brighton vs United game:

“I don’t think the players ignored the game plan but they weren’t able to stop them. We gave them too much space and time. When you give technically good players this space, this is what can happen.

“In the second half we took the risk to bring on Cavani to play as a second striker, but in hindsight it was too much of a risk to play in a 4-4-2 against them but we had to change the energy. Today we were second best.”

Manchester United have one last game to end the season away at Crystal Palace to end the Ralf Rangnick era. United can start concentrating on next season and get ready to splurge in the transfer market to start the rebuild.

Follow AD for the Latest Matchday Updates on Manchester United.