The defeat leaves Erik ten Hag’s side in fourth place on 63 points, four ahead of fifth-placed Liverpool but with a game in hand over its Merseyside rivals, while Brighton moves up to sixth on 55 points.
Brighton redressed their recent FA Cup penalty shoot- eschewal defeat to Manchester United by claiming a 1- 0 palm thanks to Alexis Mac Allister’s dramatic cessation- time penalty.
United, hoping to consolidate their place in the top four, were dealt the decisive blow when adjudicator Andre Marriner was transferred to the pitch- side examiner by VAR in the 99th nanosecond of an else thing-shy hassle, awarding a last- rustle spot- kick for a Luke Shaw handball.
Mac Allister, roared on by a rumbustious Amex Stadium crowd, held his whim-whams to thump the ball beyond the clutches of David De Gea, in turn moving Brighton above Tottenham and Aston Villa, while leaving United looking nervously over their shoulders.
The Seagulls’ chances of catching United and scraping into the titleholders League spots remain extremely slim, with Ten Hag’s side eight points better off, but a top- five finish is a distinct possibility going into a excited final month of institutions- Roberto De Zerbi‘s side are four points adrift of Liverpool with a two- game advantage.
“I suppose there’s a god of football,” the Brighton master beamed.” We played a fantastic game.”
It was a stunning late twist- bone that could play a significant part in who gets to enjoy the rigours of international football coming season, and in which competition.
A breathless opening, full of threat but no price, saw Antony squander United’s most presentable chance after only two twinkles, before Kaoru Mitoma followed suit by striking his occasion against the face of De Gea.
The game retrograded and flowed, end- to- end at times, with Jason Steele called into action to deny low sweats from Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, while De Gea was also kept honest by the trickiness of both Julio Enciso and Mitoma.
Important the same as the meeting at Wembley 11 days prior, Brighton offered more harmonious trouble, but were failing to discover important slice edge.
Feelings ran high throughout, fuelled by Brighton’s supposed FA Cup injustice and augmented by the fiery grains of both Bruno Fernandes and Antony the ultimate one of eight names to be taken by adjudicator Marriner.
With time running out, and Ten Hag’s side putatively happy with a point, the hosts continued to pour forward in hunt of a advance. Substitute Solly March, who missed the decisive spot- kick in that semi-final defeat, lashed wide and De Gea superbly denied Moises Caicedo’s curler.
The contest grew decreasingly contentious before Shaw inexplicably handled a corner, clawing the ball down from the head of Lewis Dunk and, after Marriner had delinquently refocused to the spot, De Gea slung himself one way while Mac Allister’s strike went the other.
“We merited to win moment and we merited to win the semi-final,” De Zerbi concluded.
The triumph represents the Italian’s twelfth league palm as Brighton director in his 26th game in charge, equalling the number of palms managed by Graham Potter in the wholeness of last season.
“I’m really happy, really pleased for the performance, for the result.
“I suppose there’s a god of football because we merited to win in the semi-final and we lost on penalties, then we won with a penalty for us. Both games I suppose we played better than United and the last result was illegal.
“We played a fantastic game, we dominated the game against one inconceivable platoon, one great platoon. But I suppose my players merited to win.”
Asked what this says about what Brighton can achieve this season, De Zerbi, keen to concentrate on the coming game at home to Everton on Monday, replied” At the moment, nothing.”
He added” We’re to play another six games, six veritably tough games, and on Monday we will play the first game, veritably tough against Everton, and we’ve to win because if we don’t win against Everton we lose these three points.”
“In the first nanosecond we produce a great chance but we don’t score so we’ve to be more clinical with the chances that we produce in the first half.
“We had the chances, easily. Antony, Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Casemiro. One has to go by. But if you can not win it because you don’t take your chances, don’t lose it. We gave away a thing, perhaps we lose a little bit of focus. That can not be.
“Also, we were a little unlucky because it was no way a free- kick that the corner was coming from. There were so numerous bad tackles tonight where there was no whoosh and this was nothing, a fair block, and there’s a whoosh. Know More Football News…
