Manchester United lose 3-2 to Brighton, crash out of League Cup

Manchester United surrendered a two-goal lead to Brighton as they were beaten 3-2 at Old Trafford in the League Cup third round. Teenager Shea Lacey opened the scoring inside eight minutes with his first United goal and Mason Mount made it 2-0 two minutes later, but Brighton fought back before half-time through Charalampos Kostoulas. The second half saw Pascal Gross equalise on 65 minutes and Maxim De Cuyper complete the turnaround five minutes later. The defeat was a harsh blow for Carrick, whose side were booed off after the collapse. United had arrived at Old Trafford still smarting from a controversial 1-0 home loss to Manchester City at the weekend in which VAR later admitted to an error; the club now have just one win from their opening four Premier League fixtures and have lost three of six matches in all competitions. Carrick made eight changes to his side for the cup tie, a decision that exposed limited squad depth as United’s defensive frailties re-emerged with poor marking leading to Kostoulas’s first-half goal and sloppy defending for Brighton’s winner. The defeat also continues a worrying pattern against Brighton, who knocked United out of the FA Cup at Old Trafford in January, and marks the first time in 50 years that United have lost at home after leading 2-0. The result ramps up pressure on Carrick ahead of Sunday’s Premier League trip to Fulham; another defeat there would deepen the rhetoric of a crisis barely a month into the season. Brighton progress to the fourth round, while elsewhere in the cup Aston Villa beat Coventry 3-1, Everton edged Wolves 1-0, and lower-league Fleetwood Town reached the fourth round with a 1-0 win over Sheffield United.