A 4-2 win against Brighton marked the first time Amorim has won three Premier League matches in a row


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For the first time under Ruben Amorim, Manchester United have won three consecutive games in the Premier League, defeating Brighton 4-2 at Old Trafford. When Matheus Cunha scored the opening goal in front of the home faithful, a roar rang out over the crowd that announced one thing loud and clear, that the Red Devils are back.

Building a three-goal lead by the 65th minute of play, Amorim's team allowed themselves room for error that they'd end up needing as Brighton scored twice before Bryan Mbuemo put an exclamation point on the victory with a tidy finish in stoppage time. It's not the cleanest way to close out a match, but it still equals a complete 90 minutes and a moment where it feels like the tide is changing under Amorim.

The Red Devils could end the weekend in a Champions League place as they look to make a return to Europe's premier competition for the first time since the 2023-24 season, where they were knocked out during the group stage. A club with a proud history, United haven't made it to the knockout stages of the competition since the 2021-22 season.

Their new look attack of Cunha, Benjamin Sesko, and Mbeumo combined for three goals and an assist, which is just what United needed after investing heavily in their front three. Luke Shaw also led the defense to keep Brighton contained for most of the match, although when he left the pitch, without Harry Maguire available, the inexperience of the rest of the backline showed, allowing Brighton to score twice.

But allowing an xG of only 1.07 from 17 shots by Brighton shows how impressive the team defense was by the Red Devils, despite conceding. The midfield will still need to improve as it's heavily reliant on Casemiro, but this feels like a time to be hopeful of what the team can accomplish under Amorim.

Players know what they need to do and are passing through the opposition, fans are supporting their team, and results are following. With steps back from teams like Aston Villa, there's no reason why United shouldn't be able to finish in a European spot, especially when there are seven English teams in European competitions this season. The extra miles on United's competitors legs will provide more of an opportunity to push for a European spot. Already on 16 points from nine games, there's a marked improvement over United's performance from last campaign, but the close of the Brighton match shows that there's defensive work to due.

Shaw has consistently missed time, and with Magurie being 32, there are moments where he'll need to be rotated as well. Matthijs de Ligt is someone who was added to be an anchor of the defense moving forward, and getting him to that point will ensure that United's revitalization is a sustainable one. At the moment, things are hanging on by a thread of what will happen if the Red Devils suffer a bad loss in the future, but defensive improvement could ensure that doesn't happen.

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