Cristiano Ronaldo spared Ralf Rangnick’s blushes as Manchester United were lacklustre once again, but still claimed a crucial 2-0 win over Brighton. The superstar’s moment of brilliance was the difference, with the visitors also seeing Lewis Dunk sent off in the second-half.
Brighton were dominant in the first period, with only the heroics of David de Gea keeping the scoreline level.
But Ronaldo handed United an undeserved lead when he picked up the ball just outside the box, cut inside and fired into the net.
Within 90 seconds of that strike, Brighton had gone down to 10 men, with Dunk bringing down Anthony Elanga and being handed a red card after a VAR check.
That sending off all but sealed the win for United, with Bruno Fernandes adding a second at the death, but the result glazed over another poor display from Rangnick’s men.
Express Sport is on hand with player ratings for United.
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David de Gea – 8
The Spanish keeper pulled off two excellent saves to keep United in the game in the first-half, with Brighton dominant.
First, he denied Jakub Moder down low before flying across his goal to palm the Brighton star’s header out for a corner.
Diogo Dalot – 6
Dealt reasonably well with Brighton’s left-hand side, keeping Leandro Trossard fairly quiet.
Provided some attacking spark, at one point driving forward to link up with Elanga, but his forays forward were rare.
Victor Lindelof – 6
A solid outing for Lindelof, who was thrown into the starting line-up moments before kick-off after Raphael Varane was taken ill.
Did not really put a foot wrong, but did not do anything to catch the eye either.
Harry Maguire – 5
Amid fierce criticism of his recent performances, the United captain did nothing to prove his detractors wrong.
Sloppy in possession, all at sea when organising his defence and giving away needless fouls, Maguire was again unconvincing.
Luke Shaw – 4
Much of Brighton’s best play came down Shaw’s side of the pitch, with the Englishman struggling to deal with Neal Maupay.
Shaw was often caught out when Brighton won a turnover and they exploited his dreadful positioning.
Scott McTominay – 5
Failed to stamp his authority on midfield, winning just two of his seven duels in the first-half.
The Scot also struggled to get on the ball, with United being ruthlessly pressed by Brighton.
Fred – 4
A dreadful performance from the Brazilian, who appeared to give the ball away with every pass he attempted to make.
Many of his passes went straight to a Brighton player, with Fred doing very few things right as United’s midfield were totally overrun.
Bruno Fernandes – 5
A frustrating night for the Portugal international, who was largely anonymous in the central attacking midfielder spot.
He failed to have a shot or make a key pass in the first-half and fired straight at the keeper with the goal gaping following Ronaldo’s squared pass after the break.
He was able to add United’s second at the death when he broke forward, delayed his shot and fired in.
Jadon Sancho – 5
While he had some bright moments, Sancho blew United’s best opportunity before the break when he greedily took a shot instead of squaring for one of his team-mates to tap in.
The winger found it tough going against Brighton’s defence and again failed to live up to his hefty price tag.
Anthony Elanga – 6
Off the pace for much of the game, Elanga did win two free-kicks in dangerous positions for his side.
The second of those fouls saw him nip in to take the ball off Lewis Dunk, who brought him down and was sent off.
Cristiano Ronaldo – 7
He spared Ralf Rangnick’s blushes with a moment of brilliance early in the second-half when he picked up the ball, cut inside and blasted in a goal.
In the first-half he had been United’s only attacking threat, creating the chance that Sancho should have done better with.
SUBSTITUTES
Paul Pogba (for Fred, 73) – 6
Marcus Rashford (for Elanga, 79) – 5
Alex Telles (for Sancho, 79) – 5
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