After their 3-0 loss to Sevilla in the Europa League, United are set to face Brighton in their semi-final of the FA cup. Will the reds finally end their streak of bad form and put themselves into the Wembley Stadium Final? Read on to hear our betting tips & predictions for this match.
Manchester United vs Brighton Stats & Facts
- Manchester United has defeated Brighton five times in FA Cup play, most recently in the 2017-18 quarterfinals.
- Brighton have won their last two meetings against Manchester United in all competitions, tying their total from the previous 17 (D2 L12).
- Brighton are competing in their third FA Cup semi-final; in 1983, they defeated Sheffield Wednesday to reach the championship game, and in 2019, they fell to eventual champions Manchester City.
- This will be Manchester United’s 31st appearance in the FA Cup semi-final, the most of any club in the history of the competition. After winning 13 consecutive semi-finals from 1976 to 2007, the Red Devils have now lost three of their last five, most recently in 2020 against Chelsea.
- With a win, Manchester United will tie Arsenal for the most FA Cup final appearances (21). The Red Devils have already won the League Cup this season and could reach the final of both main domestic competitions for the third time in a single season, having done so previously in 1982-83 and 1993-94.
Manchester United vs Brighton Squadlists
Here are the players available to Erik ten Hag and Roberto De Zerbi in this FA Cup encounter.
Manchester United Squadlist
Below is the full team squad of Manchester United. The manager, ten Hag, will pick his starting XI against Brighton from these players:
David De Gea, Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Christian Eriksen, Diogo Dalot, Raphael Varane, Casemiro, Antony, Jadon Sancho, Tyrell Malacia, Fred, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Wout Weghorst, Scott McTominay, Anthony Martial, Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof, Anthony Elanga, Alejandro Garnacho, Marcel Sabitzer, Donny van de Beek, Jack Butland, Tom Heaton, Brandon Williams, Phil Jones, Facundo Pellistri, Kobbie Mainoo.
Injuries/Out: Tom Heaton, Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw, Donny van de Beek, Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho
Brighton Squadlist
Below is the full team squad of Brighton. The manager, de Zerbi, will pick his starting XI against United from these players:
Squadlist: Robert Sénchez, Jason Steele, Adam Webster, Lewis Dunk, Levi Colwill, Jan Paul van Hecke, Pervis Estupinan, Tariq Lamptey, Joel Veltman, Moisés Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister, Jakub Moder, Billy Gilmour, Pascal Groß, Yasin Ayari, Facundo Buonanotte, Jeremy Sarmiento, Adam Lallana, Kaoru Mitoma, Solly March, Julio Enciso, Evan Ferguson, Danny Welbeck, Deniz Undav
Injuries/Out: Jakub Moder, Jeremy Sarmiento
Manchester United and Brighton Recent Form
Here is the recent form of both clubs in all competitions.
Manchester United Last Five
- 0-3 vs Sevilla – Europa League
- 2-0 vs Nottingham Forest – Premier League
- 2-2 vs Sevilla – Europa League
- 2-0 vs Everton – Premier League
- 1-0 vs Brentford – Premier League
Manchester United are currently struggling with an injury crisis which has crippled their defense; their two top choice centre-backs have been injured. Their results reflect this as they’ve only managed to keep small clubs from scoring against them. The 3-0 loss to Sevilla has to be demoralising before the FA Cup semi-finals.
Brighton Last Five
- 2-1 vs Chelsea – Premier League
- 1-2 vs Tottenham – Premier League
- 2-0 vs Bournemouth – Premier League
- 3-3 vs Brentford – Premier League
- 5-0 vs Grimsby Town – Fa Cup
Brighton has bee punching a weight class above all season with their new manager de Zerbi at the wheel. Their most recent win against Chelsea is a head-turner as you would expect Chelsea to beat Brighton, however they’re currently missing a manager. I personally think that Brighton will give United a run for their money in this semi-final.
BTTS Market
Considering the fact that United is lacking defensively and have seen lots of defensive errors in it’s last few games I would say it’s highly likely that both teams score. There’s a mismatch in United’s attack and defense; they can definitely put goals past Brighton but I don’t think they’re defending at their full capacity.
BTTS Verdict: Yes
Over/Under Market
Brighton has seen more than 2.5 goals in 4/5 matches with the outlier being their 2-0 domination of Bournemouth. They’ve proven that they can score goals with no issue. When these two clubs have lined up against one another, 9/10 matches have seen over 2.5 goals. I personally predict that if United’s defensive struggles continue this match could easily see over 2.5 goals.
Over/Under Verdict: Over 2.5
Overall Verdict: United Win 2-1
