Manchester United host Brighton in the Carabao Cup third round knowing a win could kickstart their season following a tough beginning to their campaign.
The Red Devils have only collected four points from their first four Premier League matches and lost against Manchester City on Sunday in controversial fashion despite their rivals being down to 10-men following a Phil Foden red card. United are now hoping to banish memories of that defeat and reignite a stuttering campaign with a tricky contest against Brighton in the league cup.
The Seagulls have started the season confidently and come into the match on the back of a 5-0 hammering of Coventry in their last outing. Fabian Hurzeler’s side have only lost once this season – a 4-3 defeat to Chelsea – and will be confident of brushing United aside despite playing away from home.
Though they have lost two of the last three meetings they defeat United at Old Trafford in the third round of thr FA Cup back in January and they will come into the match with the belief of securing a similar result tonight.
Follow all the action from Old Trafford with our live blog below:
Brighton have belief and confidence says Hurzeler
“We are still early in the season. We don’t take these things for granted,” Fabian Hurzeler said when assessing his team’s next run of games.
“We should understand that we are in the situation from doing the basic things right. We should stay very humble. I think that’s a big value for me and the team. So we keep working hard, keep doing the basic things right. That’s the main message.
“We should also have this belief in ourselves, have this confidence in our quality that we can go to any place in the league and compete.
“And now we have two big games ahead of us before the international break, and we take that belief into both of them.”
Brighton hold a big threat
Across four matches in the top flight this season Brighton have scored 13 goals and are leading the way in terms of goals netted – Chelsea are second with 10.
The manager also spoke about why he thinks his team are excelling in the final third of the pitch.
“I mentioned at the beginning of the season that it’s not about having one good goalscorer. It’s about having this flexibility of having many goalscorers, of having a lot of players who have the desire to score,” he explained.
“And if you have the desire to score, then you can score from all different positions. So it’s all about sacrificing things and making these runs into a box. I think that’s also a mindset thing.”
Hurzeler reacts to Coventry win
Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler was impressed by his team’s victory over Coventry last weekend but admitted that the performance was not ‘complete’.
“I wouldn’t say complete. I think part of the truth is that we had a good goalkeeper,” he reflected.
“We had in certain moments a little bit of luck that Coventry didn’t score. But overall we had a good balance between controlling the game in possession, having good structure in possession, and keeping our defensive stability.
“I think the chances they had were after set pieces, were after second phases. But for that we had a great goalkeeper, and the other part too is that in the right moment we scored the goals and we had the momentum on our side. What was positive, of course, is a clean sheet.
“What was positive is that we had this desire to score, we had this hunger to keep going and that overall makes a good performance.
“But we also understand we have to be very humble and shouldn’t take these things for granted.”
Brighton thrash ten-man Coventry as Sky Blues remain pointless and goalless
Last time out, the Seagulls were in fine form as they swept Coventry aside and will bring that confidence into tonight’s match at Old Trafford.
Read all about how they stormed to a 5-0 victory and whether they can pull off a similar result against Manchester United this evening.
Brighton’s early team news
Goalkeeper Jason Steele will be given a chance to impress with Bart Verbruggen rested.
Femi Azeez will undergo a late fitness test as he looks to make his debut while Georginio Rutter is also expected to be available.
Predicted Brighton XI: Steele; Kadioglu, Dunk, Vuskovic, Boscagli; Gross, Ayari; Gomez, Yalcouye, De Cuyper; Kostoulas.
Man Utd’s early team news
Luke Shaw remains a fitness doubt for Manchester United meaning Patrick Dorgu could be in line for another start at left-back, despite a poor outing against City.
Benjamin Sesko and Andrey Santos will likely start after being on the bench for the derby.
Predicted Man Utd XI: Lammens; Mazraoui, Maguire, Heaven, Dorgu; Mainoo, Santos; Mbeumo, Fernandes, Mount; Sesko.
How can I watch it?
Fans in the UK can watch the match for free on ITV1, with coverage starting at 7:30pm BST. Viewers can also stream the game on ITVX.
Alternatively, fans can watch the match on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football, with coverage starting at 7pm BST. If you’re not a Sky customer, you can grab a NOWTV Day Pass here to watch without a subscription.
When is Man United vs Brighton?
Manchester United’s clash with Brighton in the Carabao Cup kicks off at 8pm BST on Wednesday 16 September at Old Trafford.
Manchester United vs Brighton
With just four points from their opening four games, United will hope for a change of fortunes against the Seagulls, who knocked them out of the FA Cup on home soil last season.
Good evening!
Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of tonight’s Carabao Cup action which sees Manchester United host Brighton in the third round of the competition.
Michael Carrick’s side haven’t had the best start to the season, and lost the Manchester derby on Sunday, so they will want to impress and advance in the cup in a bid to build some momentum.
Brighton, meanwhile, are playing with confidence and come to Old Trafford on the back of a 5-0 hammering over Coventry. The Seagulls are in good and it would not be surprising if they were to progress tonight.
We’ll have all the action, team news and updates throughout the evening so stick with us as we build up to kick off at 8pm.
