Manchester United vs Brighton & Hove Albion: 3 Key Battles

Given that Harry Maguire got this header off the bench at Anfield last weekend, he will be beaming with confidence. He will be striving to get on the pitch and show his capabilities after all the criticisms he has received in the past weeks.

But Harry looks more and more comfortable in the current setup at Old Trafford.

He will be facing Danny Welbeck. The veteran striker has been in top form for the Seagulls, and he would be looking to use this complement of hold-up play, timing of runs and finishing. And as he has matured, he has gained a sense of self-assurance upfront, and that is what is going to be tricky for Maguire to deal with.

The former Foxes centre back will have to stay tight to his striking counterpart but ensure that he is not dragged out of position (given how Brighton are good at opening those channels of passes).

Brighton (like many other clubs this season) will try to bait the midfield into presses and defence with a situation to back them up before they look to exploit space behind the defence, and Welbeck’s experience makes him a constant threat in such situations. So Maguire will have to be wary of that.

Bruno Fernandes vs Carlos Baleba

Coming to the middle of the park, Carlos Baleba will have an audition at a stadium which many in there would be expecting he’d call home in 2026. But he will be dealing with a different threat, one that is deeper in terms of creative players than he has been facing all season.

Bruno Fernandes has been starting deep for United under Amorim. The Portuguese head coach likes him to create from deeper zones, ones that are more difficult to find for opponents’ defensive midfielders. And this is where, if Bruno finds his stride, he can dominate those spaces between the lines.

Ideally Baleba has to stop him from getting into those spaces, but that is too difficult of a task given it’s Bruno we are talking about. So maybe his focus here shifts to preventing those passes from reaching their way through.

Benjamin Sesko vs Lewis Dunk

Man United spearhead Benjamin Sesko has finally been getting accustomed to the playing philosophy of Ruben Amorim. And he is quite a frame up front but with the capacity to find spaces in behind with his movements. And he will be rubbing shoulders against Brighton’s veteran defender Lewis Dunk. Someone who reads the game quite well and is quite capable of going into duels with these kinds of strikers.

And this is an intense battle, given how both the players rely on this pace and physical frame to get an upper hand.