5 takeaways from Manchester United's shock defeat to Brighton
Manchester United lost their second fixture of the season 3-2, versus a team that narrowly avoided relegation to the Championship last year.
In fact, Brighton secured their Premier League survival last season with victory over United at the Amex Stadium. However, last year, Jose Mourinho's side were looking ahead to the FA Cup Final. This time, there was no such excuse.
United were unimpressive from the get-go. Heavy-legged and rash in defence, it was a disastrous performance and has the club playing catch up to defending champions, Manchester City already.
This article looks at five key takeaways for Mourinho and United as they look ahead to next week's encounter against top-four rivals, Tottenham Hotspur.
#5 United missed Alexis Sanchez
United winger, Alexis Sanchez missed the fixture with Brighton due to injury. His was a key absence for the team. Anthony Martial was preferred to Marcus Rashford in his place but underwhelmed in his opportunity to stake a claim for the starting XI.
In fact, Martial looked completely uninterested once again and it is not hard to see why Mourinho was perfectly happy to jettison him this summer. He still might decide to do so.
United desperately missed Sanchez's energy and invention in attack. The dynamism he showed against Leicester City at Old Trafford last week was not replicated by any of his team-mates versus Brighton.
If United are to put themselves back on the road to recovery against Tottenham, they need Sanchez to be fit and firing once more.