MANCHESTER UNITED slumped to a 3-2 defeat at Brighton and Hove Albion as Jose Mourinho’s men lost early ground on their title rivals.
United went into Sunday’s showdown at the Amex Stadium having watched reigning champions Manchester City and Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea secure three points against Huddersfield and Arsenal respectively.
Manchester United will have to come from behind in order to win their first Premier League title since 2013 though thanks to goals from Glenn Murray, Shane Duffy and Pascal Gross.
Murray put Brighton a goal to the good after 25 minutes with a cute flick at the near post and Duffy was on hand two minutes later to extend their advantage.
Romelu Lukaku got United back into the game 10 minutes before the break but Jose Mourinho’s men failed to stay close to Brighton for long.
Gross stepped up and dispatched his penalty thanks to a deflection off David De Gea after Eric Bailly had a rush of blood to the head in the box.
United failed to muster a response in the second half and Paul Pogba’s late penalty came too late to threaten Brighton’s hopes of gaining three points.
The result leaves an increasingly under-pressure Mourinho down in the dumps while the Seagulls soar following their first win of the new season.