Brighton condemned Manchester United to an embarrassing 3-1 home defeat as goals from Yankuba Minteh, Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter were more than enough to cancel out Bruno Fernandes penalty.
In a game that was statistically even, Brighton showed greater focus, desire, and intensity as they took all the points and ensured that United had won just once in their last six games.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game United boss Ruben Amorim said: “Another loss at home and it’s not acceptable. We can play some football but in small spaces of time, it’s not consistent. We get nervous and suffer a goal and then it’s hard to turn things around.
“We get really anxious and really nervous. You could feel it in the stadium but we can’t end games like that. No matter the result we have to be a different team in all aspects.
“Brighton were comfortable, we tried with not very good football. We lost again at home and that’s not acceptable. We need to change that fast.”
Asked if he foresees the poor results and form continuing for a while, he said: “It is clear. I’m not going to change how I see the game, I’m clear on that.
“The players are going to suffer, the fans are going to suffer, I’m sorry. I have one way of doing things but we need to survive this moment.
It’s very clear to everybody what we are going to do.”
Meanwhile, club skipper Bruno Fernandes told BBC Match of the Day: “We can’t concede goals so easily. We need to be more aggressive on the ball because this is the Premier League and the quality is so high.
“You have to be high-intensity all the time. We need to be braver on the ball in the final third and between the lines. I need to keep the ball between the lines more and then play from there.
“We can’t end up all the time with the ball at our goalkeeper like we do all the time. I believe that it’s confidence and bravery to do the right things.
“Don’t have fear of making mistakes, that’s part of football. We have to be brave to do it again and again. It doesn’t matter how much pressure is on you or how difficult it is to play for Manchester United,” he said.
💬 @B_Fernandes8 gives his verdict on Sunday's defeat.#MUFC || #MUNBHA
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 19, 2025
