Starting Formation
Brighton ran out in a 3-4-3. Dunk played between Webster to his left and Veltman to his right. Mac Allister acted as the holding midfielder in a relatively narrow central diamond, with Gross on the right, Caicedo on the left, and Lallana ahead. Trossard played on the left wing, March on the right, and Welbeck up top.
Manchester United played a 4-3-3, Shaw-Martinez-Maguire-Dalot as the back line. Fred was deepest in a three man center midfield with McTominay and Bruno. Rashford left wing, Eriksen up top as a false 9, and Sancho right wing.
The imbalanced formations set two crucial stages of combat in this match: Manchester United wingers isolated with Veltman and Webster and four Brighton midfielders against three Red Devils. Brighton won both of these matchups decisively in the first half and had the game comfortably in hand by the break.
Route 1 Potterball
While many pundits and fans associate Graham Potter’s management style with patient passing movements building from the back, his true calling card should be tactical flexibility and precise planning. Brighton did not attempt to play out of the back at all. Robert Sanchez attempted 29 passes in this match, 93% of these passes were long passes, and the rest were medium-length. Compare this to the final match of last season at home to West Ham, when just 33% of his passes were long-distance. Lewis Dunk also played 13 long passes against 3 short passes against Manchester United. They refused to build from the back, and instead sent it up the field at every opportunity.
To make this strategy fruitful, Brighton utilized their extra man in the middle to collect the knockdowns and clearances. This allowed Brighton to start many attacks from high up the pitch, with advantageous numbers. If they did not win the ball immediately, they were also well positioned to initiate the press, although I’ll get to that more later.
Here you can see what I'm talking about. Lewis Dunk dribbles backwards and hands it off to Sanchez. He invites Manchester United to step up before sending it long toward Trossard. Brighton always had an extra midfielder present for the knockdown, which helped them collect and start an attack. Graham Potter heard all the talk of Ten Hag implementing a legitimate press and decided to bypass the midfield to start attacks.
This tactic could backfire if the opposing defenders are able to quickly clear the ball upfield to where they have an advantage. But the combination of accurate long passing and winning aerial duels meant that more often than not a Brighton midfielder collected the ball in an advanced position with plenty of options. Danny Welbeck was tremendous in the air against Maguire and occasionally Ramirez. Leandro Trossard also dominated the hapless Diogo Dalot.
Organized Press
If Manchester United defenders had clean possession of the ball, (usually from a goal kick or winning one of the long balls) Brighton frequently launched a well-drilled press, to good effect. Welbeck and Lallana alternated pressuring a center back and marking Fred. Then Lallana would decide it was time to switch into the press and he would leave Fred to confront the center back with the ball. United typically tried to find Fred anyway, which frequently gave the ball away. If they succeeded in finding Fred, Brighton would send the nearest midfielder, usually Mac Allister or Caicedo. Fred did not cope with this well.
Throughout the match, Brighton's center midfielders were brilliant defensively, but Caicedo stood clear of the bunch. The statistics are astounding. He made a game-high four tackles, and won each of them. He also contributed two interceptions, two blocks, and 12 total pressures. Perhaps most promising is how well he turned successful defending into attacking. He was not aimlessly flying into challenges, he was winning the ball to keep it.
Goal Analysis
The perfect example of Caicedo's work started the move for the first goal. He robs McTominay and plays a quick one-two with Gross, then finds Trossard wide in space. A striking feature throughout this match is the quickness and directness of the Seagulls' attacking play. The team that won at Old Trafford bore no resemblance to the often plodding, complacent attacks we have seen in the past.
As you rewatch this goal, I want to highlight a few interesting dynamics. Solly March, perhaps because he had not seen much of the ball to that point, cuts from his wide position in front of the Manchester United defense. You can see this distract Maguire at the same time Welbeck makes his run into the channel. This pattern-one player checks to the ball, the other runs into space-is commonplace in youth practices, but it's the basics for a reason.
Now, watch again as March makes that run but this time focus on Pascal Gross's vision and movement. He is trailing the play after taking part in the early stage of the move. You can see him realize that March has left the wing and that he is the widest player. He drifts into the vacated slot and arrives at the back post to finish the cross. Again, this is nothing groundbreaking to fill the space your teammate vacates, but it displays well the fluidity and understanding that Brighton's attackers have with each other.
Manchester United's Approach
It was much less clear to see what United's plan of attack was. Eriksen played as a false nine, but the midfield was too crowded for him to find much space to trouble Lewis Dunk. Dunk usually let Eriksen drop into the midfield without chasing him, and it was okay.
I thought that United's play would focus on isolating their wingers against center backs, but they rarely stayed wide enough to make space. Frequently Maguire or Fernandes would find space deep in midfield and look to switch the play to the opposite wing and Sancho or Rashford weren't in the ideal spots. It was also clear that their creative players need more time together, as they lacked cohesion in their attacks.
They also suffered from some rough individual performances. Dalot, McTominay and Fred all stood out for the wrong reasons. Fred struggled to keep the ball and break the press. McTominay only made incorrect decisions with the ball in the attacking third. Dalot crowded Sancho when he ventured forward, and decidedly lost most individual battles with Trossard.
Overall, they looked like a team that prepared to press and never really had the chance. They were bereft of ideas in possession.
Second Half
The second half was much less interesting tactically. Graham Potter decided that two goals would be enough, and called off the press. He also switched the formation into a 4-3-2-1 with March sliding back into the defense. The defense held up okay, though they played too narrowly at times. The own goal is a worrying bit of flapping from Sanchez, who should be able to deal much better with Dalot. I think he was unsighted at the last moment by Maguire's wild leap, but he should go with two hands when he punches.
Standout Performers
- Moises Caicedo: Best player on the pitch, instrumental in both goals, dominated the midfield. Extremely promising.
- Danny Welbeck: He was central to the task on the day as a target forward and he made it work. Also showed great movement when his midfielders had time on the ball.
- Leandro Trossard: Surprisingly effective when targeted with long passes. Creative and skillful as always. Pinpoint pass on the first goal.
- Center Back Trio: Extremely sturdy and tidy the whole match. Commanding presence in the air, and a few important blocks while protecting the lead.
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