Manchester United Narrowly Defeat Brighton Behind Lone Goal from Ashley Young

Brighton & Hove Albion put up a solid fight at Old Trafford during Saturday's Premier League action, but a single goal from Ashley Young saw the Red Devils grab a 1-0 win.

Young finally broke the deadlock after 66 minutes, giving the hosts the lead in a dull affair. The Seagulls were unable to turn the match around, with United dominating after the break.

Here's a look at the teamsheet, via Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News:

Both teams started the match with attacking intent, and the ball moved up and down the pitch quickly. Romelu Lukaku had an early look on goal, but he placed his shot over the bar.

On the other end of the pitch, Anthony Knockaert should have been more selfish, but he decided to pass instead of go for goal himself from a great position. Brighton continued to find openings, and David De Gea had to be alert to deal with a strike from Pascal Gross.

ESPN FC's Rob Dawson noted the Red Devils struggled to create much in the attacking third:

Their struggles were perhaps best illustrated when Paul Pogba let loose from well over 35 yards out, and Mat Ryan made an easy save.

After the fast start, the visitors became more cautious, and the rest of the half played out without many incidents. United manager Jose Mourinho sent several players to warm up just past the half-hour point, as he was clearly unhappy with his team's performance and intended to make some quick changes.

Brighton had one more good chance to end the half, as Bruno only just failed to make contact with a sharp free-kick, and Ryan somehow prevented United from taking the lead with a series of improbable saves on a corner.

Joe Prince-Wright of NBC Sports was impressed:

Brighton remained the more threatening team early in the second half, but United continued to prod, and cracks started to show in the yellow wall. The introduction of Zlatan Ibrahimovic also gave the hosts another target in the box, signaling the start of a barrage of crosses.

Fans were anticipating the Swede to break the deadlock, scoring his first goal since suffering a devastating injury last season, but instead, it was Young who opened the scoring with a shot that took a lucky deflection.

Former England international Gary Lineker summed up the sequence that led to the opener:

The goal did lead to more action, and Lukaku threatened with a good header that flew over the bar. Antonio Valencia wanted a penalty after his cross appeared to hit a Brighton defender on the arm, but the official turned his appeal down.

Chris Smalling missed the target with a tricky header, and entering the final minutes, the Red Devils dug themselves in to protect the lead. This led to a few half-chances for Brighton, although Ibrahimovic went closest to scoring, flashing a shot wide.