Prediction: Brighton vs Manchester United

Prediction: Manchester United win

Best Odds: 3/4

Bookmaker: bet365

The Premier League is back in full flow, as we gear up for the second set of fixtures this weekend. One of the stand-out games is undoubtedly the encounter between Brighton & Hove Albion and Manchester United, with both teams possessing very different objectives this season. The Seagulls will want to secure their place in the top flight once again, whereas United will feel like they’re a side who should be realistically aiming to make a push for the title – or at the very least, make it look competitive.

Brighton

Under the tutelage of Chris Hughton, Brighton have been a consistent force both in the Championship and the Premier League. Alas, as the teams around them got stronger in the summer it doesn’t seem as if they were able to add quite as much quality, as evidenced by their opening day result. The Amex Stadium crowd has been able to lift them to big results in the past and could do so again here, but either way, they’re likely going to have their backs against the wall for the majority of this game.

Team News

Jose Izquierdo, Florin Andone and Bruno are all doubts for this game, with Glenn Murray being the man who will be viewed as Brighton’s best hope for goals in this one.

Manchester United

While the primary ‘storyline’ of sorts surrounding Old Trafford may be Jose Mourinho and the future of Paul Pogba, it’s vitally important for the club to redirect their attention to what’s happening on the pitch. They’ve got a squad that is more than capable of putting together a tremendous season, but they just need to start gelling as a unit. They haven’t been playing attractive football on a consistent basis for quite some time now and some fans won’t care about that, but against sides like Brighton, they need to prove that they’re still a dangerous opposition.

Team News

Jesse Lingard will be hoping to start the game, with Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku being tasked with the job of getting United firing on all fronts from an attacking perspective.

Factors to Consider

• The game will be played at Amex Stadium.
• Manchester United lead 12-2 in the head to head rankings.
• Brighton won the last meeting between the two sides 1-0 back in May.
• Man United defeated Leicester 2-1 in their opening fixture.
• Brighton lost 2-0 against Watford in their opening fixture.

Conclusion

Despite all of the off the pitch shenanigans and ordeals that have been thrown United’s way, we still think that they’ll be able to grind out a pretty comfortable 3-1 win against Brighton at the weekend. The hosts didn’t look great against Watford last weekend and while the home crowd could spur them on towards a result in this one, we just don’t think they’ve got the quality necessary to come away with anything other than a defeat. The visitors will control the tempo, stem the flow of early attacks and break them down.

Prediction: Manchester United win

Best Odds: 3/4

Bookmaker: bet365