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Man Utd
Oct 25, 2025 5.30pm
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Brighton

Man United 4-2 Brighton: Highlights, man of the match, stats as Cunha, Casemiro, Mbeumo all score in Old Trafford win

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Cunha, Mbeumo inspire Man Utd to victory in six-goal thriller despite Brighton fightback
© Imago / Sportimage

Manchester United summer signings Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo were on target to inspire Ruben Amorim’s men to a 4-2 Premier League victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at Old Trafford on Saturday evening.

Cunha, a £62.5m addition from Wolves, scored his first Red Devils goal and ended his 16-game drought for club and country by curling a beautiful opener into the bottom corner midway through the first half, before his Brazilian compatriot Casemiro doubled the Red Devils’ advantage courtesy of a wicked deflection off Yasin Ayari.

Brighton began the opening 45 by zipping the ball around in confident fashion at a stadium where they had won each of their previous three visits in the top flight, but mistakes proved costly for the Seagulls, who were uncharacteristically poor in possession after the interval.

Man United rubbed salt into Brighton’s wounds when the effervescent Mbeumo added a third, with the goal allowed to stand despite replays showing a clear tug from Luke Shaw on Georginio Rutter’s shirt just seconds earlier.

Brighton would not go down without a fight, though, and former Man United striker Danny Welbeck pulled one back in the final 15 minutes with a superb free kick - his fifth goal in four Premier League games.

Teenage substitute Charalampos Kostoulas scored his first Brighton goal in stoppage time to set up a nervy finish for the hosts, but Mbeumo quickly shattered the Seagulls’ hopes of a dramatic comeback by firing home his second and Man United’s fourth to wrap up all three points with the last kick of a six-goal thriller.

Victory for Amorim’s men represents their third in a row in the Premier League and has seen them climb from ninth to fourth in the table, above champions Liverpool who suffered a 3-2 loss at Brentford.

As for Fabian Hurzeler’s side, they have seen their four-game unbeaten run come to an end and have slipped out of the top half of the table down to 13th place.

SPORTS MOLE'S VERDICT

© Iconsport / PA Images

Oliver Thomas live from Old Trafford

For the first time since February 2024, and for the first time under Ruben Amorim, Man United have won three games in a row and a corner has certainly been turned at Old Trafford, even if the Red Devils are by no means the finished article just yet.

Man United's new-look front line is now beginning to resemble something recognisable, with Mbeumo and Cunha - two priority signings made in the summer costing a combined £133.5m - proving to be shrewd investments given their recent performances.

Overall, Man United played well as a collective unit against Brighton which will have impressed Amorim, though one task that still remains for the Portuguese is how to get the best out of Benjamin Sesko, who did not have a single touch in the opening 23 minutes and is yet to shine as brightly as his attack-minded teammates Cunha and Mbeumo in the final third.

As for Brighton, inconsistent is certainly one word that Seagulls supporters will use to describe their start to the 2025-26 campaign, as three wins, three draws and three defeats have been posted across their opening nine Premier League fixtures.

Hurzeler’s side are known for their dominance in possession, but the error-strewn midfield performances of Yasin Ayari and Carlos Baleba will have disappointed the German, the latter was unable to impress in front of Man United chiefs amid reported transfer interest from the Red Devils.

MAN UNITED VS. BRIGHTON HIGHLIGHTS

Matheus Cunha goal vs. Brighton (24th min, Man United 1-0 Brighton)

Shortly after referee Anthony Taylor riled up the Old Trafford faithful by waving away three separate appeals for a foul, Matheus Cunha fires Man United in front with his first goal for the club.

Bruno Fernandes initially juggles the ball on the edge of the area before passing to Casemiro, who then lays the ball off to Brazilian compatriot Cunha to take a touch and curl a sweet right-footed strike into the bottom corner.

Casemiro goal vs. Brighton (34th min, Man United 2-0 Brighton)

A huge slice of luck for the Red Devils!

Casemiro takes aim from the edge of the area, but his shot takes a massive deflection off the back of Yasin Ayari. Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen is already down on the ground and has no time to react to the ball trickling into the opposite side of his net.

The goal is awarded to Casemiro following a Premier League review, much to the relief of Ayari who would not want the honour of having an own goal to his name.

Bryan Mbeumo goal vs. Brighton (61st min, Man United 3-0 Brighton)

Danny Welbeck goal vs. Man United (74th min, Man United 3-1 Brighton)

Brighton score again, this time through 18-year-old Kostoulas, who wins the header at the front post from a corner and glances it past Lammens.

Mbeumo secures all three points for Man United!

The Red Devils attacker runs onto Fernandes's threaded ball and slams a left-footed shot in off the crossbar with the final kick of the match.

MAN OF THE MATCH - BRYAN MBEUMO

© Imago

There were plenty of candidates for Man of the Match from Man United. Both Cunha and Casemiro deserve special mentions, but our star of the show was Bryan Mbeumo who scored two important second-half goals to secure maximum points for the hosts.

The £71m summer signing from Brentford also regained possession seven times, won six duels and completed four take-ons during a superb all-round display from the attacker.

Mbeumo loves playing against Brighton, as he has now been involved in eight goals across his last five Premier League starts versus the Seagulls (five goals, three assists). 

MAN UNITED VS. BRIGHTON MATCH STATS

Possession: Man United 42%-58% Brighton

Shots: Man United 13-15 Brighton

Shots on target: Man United 9-5 Brighton

Corners: Man United 1-6 Brighton

Fouls: Man United 4-13 Brighton

BEST STATS

WHAT NEXT?

Brighton will now turn their attention to the fourth round of the EFL Cup as they prepare to face Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday night.

As for Man United, they are next in Premier League action against Sean Dyche’s Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on November 1.

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