Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes were in goal as Manchester United beat Brighton and Hove Albion in a 2-0 win at 10-man Old Trafford.
The Red Devils reached the top four of the Premier League thanks to two goals from the two Portuguese in the second half.
Ronaldo ended a run of six games without a goal by scoring the opening goal in the 51st minute, just before Lewis Dunk was shown the red card for Brighton.
And Fernandes won the points after a quick counterattack in added time as the visitors looked for a spectacular draw.
Brighton had never won an away game at Old Trafford in their 13 previous visits. They got off to a brilliant start, however, and David de Gea came on with a smart save to save Jakub Moder after Anthony Elanga was caught with the ball outside United’s box.
At the other end, Robert Sánchez also showed sharp reflexes to counter Jadon Sancho after the England international counter-heeled Ronaldo.
But the Seagulls remained the biggest threat in Graham Potter’s 100th Premier League game and De Gea came to the rescue again to avoid Moder’s header while Yves Bissouma finished narrowly.
Six minutes after the restart, the pendulum swung in United’s favour. McTominay stole possession from Bissouma and the ball spread smoothly to Ronaldo, who pushed forward before firing a hard shot into the bottom corner.
In three minutes Brighton had shrunk to ten men; Dunk gave his marching orders after a VAR consultation after defeating Elanga.
The residents went in search of the second target; Sánchez defends well against Fernandes and Ronaldo, who are also facing each other at close range.
By now Moder was getting very close to a Brighton EQ; swung the bar from long range when former United forward Danny Welbeck missed with a close-range header.
With Brighton pressing in the final moments, the Red Devils reacted relentlessly with Fernandes sealing the deal after Paul Pogba brought him in as a substitute.
What does that mean? The union wins again
United were booed off at half-time with just 41 percent possession and just three shots on eight by Brighton.
But the hosts were much better after the break as they ended a three-game winning streak in all competitions.
Ronaldo is back
47 days had passed since Ronaldo’s last Premier League goal in the 3-1 win over Burnley.
However, the Portuguese captain ended the losing streak with a great goal early in the second half.
His goal came with one in five shots on target, while only compatriot Fernandes (five) topped his tally with three key assists.
Bissouma impressed
As the wait for their first away win in Manchester continues, Brighton have taken many positives from their performance, including Bissouma’s strong display in midfield.
The Mali international led the visitors with four tackles, three eliminations and ten possession games, while neither player on the team surpassed his tally of six interceptions.
Key Opta stats:
- United have not conceded twice in their last three Premier League home games, as many as in the previous 18.
- Brighton have suffered their first defeat in eight Premier League games (W3, W4), although it was only their second away defeat of the season.
- Dunk’s red card was Brighton’s 10th in the Premier League under Graham Potter – only Arsenal (13) have had more contention since taking the lead.
- Ronaldo has scored against 168 different opponents in his club and country career and has netted at least once in the last 21 years since 2002.
- Fernandes has had more chances than any other Premier League player this season (71), including a record five against Brighton.
What follow?
The big games continue for United. They meet Premier League rivals Leeds United on Sunday before traveling to Spain to face Atletico Madrid in the Champions League round of 16 first leg.