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At a packed Old Trafford, Manchester United kicked off their 2022-23 Premier League campaign with a clash against Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday afternoon (August 8).
Following a disappointing 2021-22 season, United fans were eager to see a positive start under new manager Erik ten Hag.
Unfortunately, that did not turn out to be the case as the English giants succumbed to a 2-1 defeat. The effervescent Pascal Gross scored twice to condemn United to a disappointing opening day defeat.
Playing in front of their supporters, the hosts started the match in admirable fashion. They looked comfortable in possession and fashioned their first chance just six minutes into the game. Bruno Fernandes latched on to Scott McTominay’s cutback from the right, but the Portuguese's effort from the middle of the box flew well over the target.
Following a bright start, Manchester United fizzled out, allowing Brighton to grow into the game. In the 24th minute, Moises Caicedo swung in a delicious ball for Danny Welbeck. The hosts somehow read the danger and blocked his header.
Brighton’s next attempt, however, turned out to be too hot to handle for the Red Devils, with them failing to read Gross’ movement and preventing him from scoring a tap-in in the 30th minute.
Nine minutes later, Gross doubled his side’s advantage, turning in the rebound after David de Gea failed to handle Solly March’s shot. The goal shell-shocked the fans and players alike and a response was nowhere to be seen in the remaining minutes of the first half.
Manchester United started the second half with urgency, but the Seagulls could have easily extended their lead. Capitalizing on a careless bit of play by United, Leandro Trossard picked up the ball and swung in a cross for Welbeck. The Englishman got on the end of it but ended up nodding it wide of goal.
The hosts got a lifeline in the 68th minute when Mac Allister turned the ball into his own net. Surprisingly, the goal did not amount to much as the Red Devils failed to make the most of their momentum in the next 22 minutes.
On that note, here are five Manchester United players who failed to live up to the billing in their opening day defeat to Brighton on Sunday afternoon.
#5 Cristiano Ronaldo
Having played only 45 minutes of pre-season football, Cristiano Ronaldo was not deemed fit enough to start against Brighton & Hove Albion.
However, Ten Hag eventually had to bring him on in the 53rd minute in place of Fred in an attempt to turn the tide in his team’s favor in the second half.
Ronaldo’s runs behind the opposition were encouraging and it certainly made Manchester United’s attack more threatening. However, he could not quite serve as the focal point of the attack, a role he thrives in. In his 37-minute cameo, the Portuguese had no attempts on target, took only 12 touches and ceded possession twice.
Ronaldo was not one of United's worst performers, but given his stature, it was expected of him to do a smidgen better than he did on Sunday.
#4 Scott McTominay
Ten Hag gave McTominay a fair chance to impress in the Premier League opening day bout against Brighton, but the midfielder simply wasn’t up for it.
He was sluggish in possession, took too many touches, and put his teammates under pressure more often than not.
The Scotland international played only 18 accurate passes (66.7 percent accuracy), lost three of his five ground duels, ceded possession 12 times, and was rightfully booked for a foul on Caicedo in the 25th minute.
It certainly was not the confidence-inducing performance everyone wanted to see from him and the Scot was hooked off for Donny van de Beek in the 78th minute.
#3 Fred
Fred, like his midfield partner McTominay, was all over the place against the visitors. He was weak in one-on-one situations, was stretched easily by Brighton’s pacey frontmen, and rarely did anything to help United in their way.
The Brazilian lost all four of his ground duels, committed a foul, lost possession nine times, and was dribbled past twice.
Following a disappointing performance, the midfielder was sacrificed for Ronaldo in the 53rd minute.
#2 David de Gea
David de Gea, one of the most senior players on the team, was expected to lead the team by example in their Premier League opener on Sunday. Instead, he turned out to be one of their worst players, enduring two embarrassing moments.
In the 30th minute, Welbeck squared the ball for Gross to turn it in at the far post. The Spanish keeper should have done better to keep the cross from reaching the veteran Brighton star.
Nine minutes later, his weak shot-stopping allowed Gross to extend the Seagull’s lead. His poor right-hand save (March’s shot) saw the ball fall directly onto Gross’ path, who unhesitantly found the back of the net with a ferocious drive.
De Gea’s long ball distribution was also sub-par on Sunday, with him misplacing five of seven attempted long passes.
#1 Marcus Rashford
Ten Hag deployed Marcus Rashford on the left wing against Brighton, hoping for the forward to trouble the visitors with his pace and dribbling ability. Instead of making the most of the opportunity, Rashford served as just another passenger, watching the game pass him by.
In the 60th minute, Ronaldo’s low cross from the right put the Englishman in a one-on-one situation, but he couldn’t find a way to take the ball past Robert Sanchez. Fortunately for him, the flag was quickly raised for offside (Ronaldo). Six minutes later, he received a great cross from the left, but the forward could not keep his attempted volley on target.
Against Brighton, Rashford had a total of three shots (none on target), lost six duels, and ceded possession 10 times. A night to forget for the Three Lions star.
