Just a year after guiding Brighton Hove Albion to European football for the first time in their history, Head Coach Roberto De Zerbi will leave the Amex Stadium after their final day clash with Manchester United. The Italian spoke of his pride at what he’s achieved with the Seagulls, but with European heavyweights Bayern Munich and Barcelona reportedly interested in his services, perhaps greater heights await.
His union with Brighton Hove Albion may well be ending at the perfect time after their season petered out with a run of one win from nine matches since exiting Europe. The Seagulls will bring the curtain down on their campaign with a fifth consecutive home meeting against top-eight opposition, and confidence should be high as they’ve won four consecutive Premier League meetings against Manchester United – nobody has ever managed five in succession against the Red Devils in this competition.
That’s an alarming trend for a Manchester United side arriving with their fate out of their hands on the final day. Despite a 3-2 victory over Newcastle in midweek, the Red Devils’ negative goal difference means they need to better the Magpies’ result if they’re to qualify for Europe via their league position and avoid their lowest-ever finish in the Premier League era.
While Erik ten Hag’s men certainly showed some of what they’re capable of on Wednesday, a run of two wins from nine league outings (D4, L3) suggests it may’ve been more of a flash in the pan. Backing that up looks even more difficult with Manchester United winless in five away league matches (D2, L3) – a sequence that’s seen them concede a whopping 14 goals.
Players to watch: Named in the Germany squad for the Euros, Brighton Hove Albion player of the season Pascal Groß saves his best work for Manchester United, scoring a career-high seven times against them, four of which have come in his last three league meetings. Amad Diallo has finally broken into the Manchester United side of late and looks set to stay after scoring and assisting against Newcastle.
Hot stat: Brighton Hove Albion have not scored more than one goal in any of their last seven home matches across all competitions.
