Manchester United 2-3 Brighton: a two-goal deficit undone
AI-written review based on match data · How we make it
Key numbers
- United 12 shots, against a 21 average this season
- Groß: 5 key passes, the most in the match
- 69': De Cuyper's winner, +1.2 FN xPts
Early goals did not hold
Manchester United led 2-0 after nine minutes, with Shea Lacey and Mason Mount scoring in successive minutes, and they were in front for roughly 57 minutes in all. Brighton still won. Charalampos Kostoulas's goal in first-half stoppage time kept them in touch, and the second-half turnaround did the rest.
Less ball, closer shots
Brighton's 58% possession was lower than their average across six matches this season. Less ball, closer shots describes their afternoon: 14 of their attempts came from inside the box. That suggests they gave up some control in exchange for getting nearer to goal.
United's output fell below their norm
United's match looked different from their usual pattern. They managed 12 shots, against an average of 21 across their five matches this season, and conceded far more attempts than they typically allow. It suggests they struggled to build on the early lead.
A substitute's goal turned the match
Maxim De Cuyper came off the bench and scored the winner in the 69th minute, worth +1.2 FN xPts because it turned a draw into a lead. Groß's equaliser in the 65th minute had opened the door, and Brighton took the chance to complete the comeback.
Player of the match
Pascal Groß 8.5Dominant
Top of the FN Score with a goal and a match-high five key passes.
Groß did most of his work in attack, taking three shots and completing 58 of his 65 passes. He was the creative hub of Brighton's recovery: his goal in the 65th minute levelled the match, and the winner followed in the 69th. A two-goal deficit became a lead in a short spell, with Groß at the start of it.
Game state
1-02-02-12-22-3
Manchester United ahead 57 min · level 12 min · Brighton ahead 21 min
FN xPts — what each moment was worth
How much each moment changed that team's expected points (win 3, draw 1). A goal's value is credited 70% to the scorer and 30% to the assist.
8'
Shea Lacey
Goal · scorer +0.5 · assist Youri Tielemans +0.2
+0.7
9'
Mason Mount
Goal
+0.5
45+1'
Charalampos Kostoulas
Goal · scorer +0.2 · assist Jaouen Hadjam +0.1
+0.3
65'
Pascal Groß
Goal · scorer +0.6 · assist Luka Vušković +0.2
+0.8
69'
Maxim De Cuyper
Goal
+1.2
Knockout ties have no league points, so moments are weighed on a win-3/draw-1 scale only.
How FN Score and FN xPts work →
Match stats
Manchester UnitedBrighton
The data provider has no xG (expected goals) for this match.
Compared with usual
Manchester United
5 matches this season, all competitions baseline
| This match | Avg | |
|---|
| Goals | 2 | 2.2 | |
| Conceded | 3 | 1.4 | |
| Shots | 12 | 21 | |
| On target | 4 | 6.4 | |
| Shots faced | 18 | 10.4 | |
| Possession | 42% | 60% | |
| Passes | 527 | 570.6 | |
| Corners | 4 | 6 | |
| Fouls | 5 | 11.2 | |
Brighton
6 matches this season, all competitions baseline
| This match | Avg | |
|---|
| Goals | 3 | 2.8 | |
| Conceded | 2 | 0.83 | |
| Shots | 18 | 20.7 | |
| On target | 5 | 6.3 | |
| Shots faced | 12 | 9.5 | |
| Possession | 58% | 71.5% | |
| Passes | 535 | 633.3 | |
| Corners | 3 | 6.7 | |
| Fouls | 14 | 14 | |
Timeline
- 8'
Goal
Shea Lacey competition goal #1 assist Youri Tielemans
- 9'
Goal
Mason Mount competition goal #1
- 43'
Yellow
José María Andrés Baixauli
- 45+1'
Goal
Charalampos Kostoulas competition goal #1 assist Jaouen Hadjam
- 59'
Yellow
Jaouen Hadjam
- 65'
Goal
Pascal Groß competition goal #1 assist Luka Vušković
- 66'
Sub
Benjamin Šeško → Joshua Zirkzee
- 66'
Sub
Andrey Santos → Kobbie Mainoo
- 66'
Sub
Shea Lacey → Bryan Mbeumo
- 66'
Sub
Malick Yalcouyé → Maxim De Cuyper
- 66'
Sub
Matt O'Riley → Diego Gómez
- 69'
Goal
Maxim De Cuyper competition goal #1
- 73'
Sub
Mason Mount → Bruno Fernandes
- 74'
Sub
Jaouen Hadjam → Ferdi Kadıoğlu
- 74'
Sub
Olivier Boscagli → Yasin Ayari
- 80'
Sub
Marcus Rashford → Matheus Cunha
- 82'
Sub
Charalampos Kostoulas → Georginio Rutter
- 85'
Yellow
Yasin Ayari
- 90+1'
Yellow
Maxim De Cuyper
Category leaders
- Key passesPascal Groß5
- Duels wonYouri Tielemans11/15
- DribblesMarcus Rashford3/5
- Defensive actionsNoussair Mazraoui6
- ShotsYouri Tielemans4 (on target 0)
- Fouls wonAyden Heaven3
#Manchester United#Brighton#EFL Cup#Pascal Groß#Maxim De Cuyper#comeback
This review was written by AI from match data (API-Football). FN Score and FN xPts are calculated by Fulltime Note using a published formula.