Bryan Mbeumo scored twice as Manchester United made it three Premier League wins on the bounce with a 4-2 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at Old Trafford.
United were forced to see off a late surge from Brighton, as Mbeumo settled matters with one of the final touches of Saturday’s game.
Mbeumo had put United 3-0 up in the 61st minute, building on first-half goals from Matheus Cunha, his first for the club, and Casemiro.
But with Ruben Amorim’s team seemingly heading towards a routine victory, former United forward Danny Welbeck dragged Brighton back into it with a stunning free-kick before Charalampos Kostoulas headed in their second in stoppage time.
Yet Mbeumo had the final say when he rifled into the roof of the net in the sixth minute of stoppage time, sealing United’s fourth consecutive home win and sending the Red Devils, at least temporarily, into the top four, while Brighton sit 12th.
How the match unfolded
Having already forced a fine save from Bart Verbruggen, Cunha got the breakthrough in the 24th minute, latching on to Casemiro’s layoff to curl a finish around Jan Paul van Hecke.
Casemiro turned from provider to scorer 10 minutes later. Luke Shaw intercepted a clearance to tee up the Brazilian, whose effort took a wicked deflection off Yasin Ayari and wrongfooted Verbruggen.
Brighton’s goalkeeper made smart stops to deny Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Sesko, but he could do nothing to prevent United scoring a third when Mbeumo slotted a low strike into the right-hand corner.
Mbeumo saw an effort saved onto the post but Welbeck’s exquisite 74th-minute free-kick gave Brighton hope, and Kostoulas then set up a nervy ending with a glancing header in the second minute of stoppage time.
However, with Brighton rushing forward in search of an equaliser, Mbeumo capitalised on the space in behind, racing beyond two defenders to smash home.
United find their attacking flair
United stepped out at Old Trafford high in confidence after claiming back-to-back wins against Sunderland and Liverpool, but Amorim warned against complacency setting in as he looked to avoid another false dawn.
His warnings came with good reason, as Brighton have served as a bogey team for United in recent years, but just like at Anfield, the Red Devils were quick out of the blocks here.
Fernandes, on his 300th United appearance, should have done better just 37 seconds in, but he got too much contact on the header and did not trouble Verbruggen.
While Cunha and Casemiro had done some damage in the first half, United could easily have had more, with Sesko slicing wide and firing straight at the goalkeeper under no pressure.
Fernandes’ hopes of marking his landmark game with a goal, meanwhile, were thwarted as Verbruggen twice denied him with strong saves at his near post.
Mbeumo made it three goals in two games, and it might have been a hat-trick had Verbruggen not tipped a strike on to the post, but for all of their attacking prowess, United were almost undone at the back.
However, Amorim will take plenty of solace from the fact that United did not capitulate, and the Red Devils will look to make it four wins on the spin when they visit Nottingham Forest next week.
Brighton leave it too late
Brighton have already earned big scalps against Manchester City and Chelsea this season, and they were hunting for a fourth straight away win over United.
But Fabian Hurzeler’s team were short of their best defensively, with errors providing the hosts with openings. At the other end, Yankuba Minteh wasted chances, failing to make contact with a Welbeck cross before being pickpocketed by a backtracking Cunha when one-on-one with the goalkeeper.
Georginio Rutter had the opportunity to change the tide on the stroke of half-time, pulling away at the back post to meet Maxim De Cuyper’s cross, only to fluff his lines under little pressure.
Hurzeler’s triple change on the hour sparked some lift into Brighton, with Minteh seeing a teasing cross excellently tipped wide by Senne Lammens, but United’s defence initially stood firm against them until Welbeck’s sensational effort.
Ferdi Kadioglu’s long-range attempt was pushed away by Lammens prior to Kostoulas giving the travelling supporters real hope of a miraculous comeback, but it was not to be.
Brighton are back in action against Arsenal in the EFL Cup in midweek, before they host Leeds United.
Club reports
Man Utd report | Brighton report
What the managers said
Fabian Hurzeler: "In the end it is about execution and our execution wasn't right today. We made too many easy mistakes and we have to start in training, take every pass and every touch seriously. We have to improve."
Next PL fixtures
Key facts
Manchester United (9 wins) vs Brighton (8 wins) is the most played fixture in Premier League history never to see a draw.
Since the start of last season, Manchester United forward Matheus Cunha has scored more goals from outside the box than any other Premier League player in all competitions (7).
Brighton forward Danny Welbeck has scored seven goals against Manchester United in all competitions, against no opponent has he scored more in his club career. Six of those have come in the Premier League, the most a former player has netted against the Red Devils in the competition.
Brighton have had six goals scored by substitutes in the Premier League this season, double the number of any other side. 18-year-old Charalampos Kostoulas became Brighton’s 10th different goalscorer in the competition this season with no side having more (level with Arsenal and Chelsea).