Manchester United were unable to capitalise on their promising start to the Premier League campaign this afternoon, falling to a 2-1 defeat Brighton.
This was always going to be an interesting test for Erik ten Hag's side, who put in a mixed performance during the 1-0 win over Fulham last weekend. A trip to the Amex was always likely to be a more rigorous assessment of their progress.
Brighton would take a first half lead through Danny Welbeck, and while Amad Diallo would level affairs in the second half, a stoppage time strike from Joao Pedro proved to be the difference between the sides.
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Gary Neville Has Huge Erik Ten Hag Worry After Brighton Defeat
While losing to Brighton away from home is far from a disastrous result in isolation, it does build the pressure on Erik ten Hag when you consider the circumstances under which he entered the campaign.
Manchester United came close to dispensing of the Dutchman during the summer after their disastrous league campaign last time around, with the shock FA Cup final victory over Manchester City likely the only thing that kept him in a job. This loss could well lead to questions around his future if it is followed with further questionable results over the coming weeks.
Speaking on NBC Sports after the game, Gary Neville admitted that he was already concerned about the pressure surrounding the Manchester United manager ahead of next weekend's game against Liverpool.
Really depressing end to the game. I thought a draw would’ve been half acceptable but to lose the game, it puts an awful lot of pressure, I think, on Erik ten Hag and on towards the game next week against Liverpool.
I think the first half of the game, I don’t think any of us were surprised. It’s very difficult to play football without a centre-forward. The lads in the studio will tell you, you need a focal point up front. He corrected that at half-time by bringing Zirkzee on, but you’ve already wasted 45 minutes in the match and that’s a real problem.
Then in the second half, the first goal as well was poor defensively, that last goal, I’ve just watched it then coming up to the gantry. When you clear from a corner, you’ve got to still defend as you’re defending the second phase of a corner.
I think particularly if you watch Casemiro, it looks to me, I’ve only watched it once back on the reply, it looks like he leaves his position at that back post and runs back towards central midfield.
But then it leaves an acre of space in that back zone where there are three Brighton players queuing up.
A poor result against Liverpool next weekend would certainly heap pressure on Erik ten Hag, who needed a strong start to the new season in order to alleviate the concerns around his position.
Manchester United will need to improve quite a bit over the next few games if they are to avoid further scrutiny buidling on their manager.
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