Manchester United's Shocking Collapse at Old Trafford
The last time Manchester United lost at Old Trafford after going 2-0 up, Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge of St Mirren.
That was 1976. John Pratt hit the winner for Tottenham, the Class of ’92 were still in nappies, and Ferguson’s dynasties at Aberdeen and United were still to be written.
That is the scale of the collapse Michael Carrick’s side produced on Wednesday night.
Anger, apathy and a mutinous Stretford End
Four days after protests inside and outside Old Trafford before defeat to 10-man Manchester City, United’s supporters didn’t bother with subtlety.
As the final whistle confirmed a Carabao Cup third-round exit to Brighton, most simply walked out, leaving the players to perform a half-hearted lap of appreciation in front of rows of red plastic. Those who stayed let them have it. Boos when Brighton turned the game around with 21 minutes left turned into open fury as United’s players trudged towards the tunnel.
Near the ‘singing section’, the message aimed at Carrick and his squad was blunt: “What was that?” The language was far stronger.
Somewhere in the middle of it all, 15-year-old JJ Gabriel was watching his first brush with the senior spotlight disappear. The club had trailed his potential debut. The way the night unfolded, that promise never stood a chance, especially once Bruno Fernandes was thrown on in the frantic chase for an equaliser.
Nothing about this mess will have Gabriel questioning his decision to turn his back on United.
Carrick under fire, but not flinching
United have now won twice this season: from behind at home to newly promoted Ipswich, and away to Azerbaijani champions Sabah FK in the Champions League. They have lost three times, already more defeats than Carrick suffered in 17 games after replacing Ruben Amorim in January.
He knows exactly what that means at this club.
“I don't feel under pressure,” he insisted. “Either way, that doesn't bother me one bit.
“I understand what goes on outside and how the world works, but it doesn't bother me. What bothers me is winning games, having a good feeling around the place and a good feeling around the group to know we're moving in a good direction.”
The problem is obvious. It does not feel like a club moving in a good direction.
Carrick tried to cling to the positives. There were not many.
Lacey’s dream, buried under boos
The one clear bright spot was Shea Lacey. On his first senior start, the teenager took his eighth-minute chance brilliantly, becoming the first United teenager to score on his full debut since Marcus Rashford in February 2016.
For a few minutes, Old Trafford had something it could believe in.
Lacey was one of eight changes Carrick made. At the back, those decisions unravelled quickly. Diogo Dalot, one of only three to keep his place, looks a shadow of the player he was. Noussair Mazraoui, asked again to cover at left-back, only underlined why the failure to sign a specialist before the window shut still baffles supporters.
In the middle, Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven played like what they are – talented but raw defenders thrown into a game that quickly ran away from them. Brighton sliced through United’s midfield with ease.
Marcus Rashford, again, flickered without delivering. He stretched Brighton, he ran in behind, and when he finally burst clear, Jason Steele denied him with a strong save. Threat, but no end product. The story of his season.
By full-time, Lacey’s moment had been swallowed by the wider collapse.
“It's a shame that Shea's moment, such a great moment for him, for his family, his friends and the whole academy; to have an academy player come in and have a moment like that, gets a bit lost, unfortunately,” Carrick said.
“It won't for him when things settle down but, as we sit here now, it feels that it was a long time ago.”
Brighton take control, United lose their way
Once Brighton recovered from Lacey’s early strike, they grew into the game and never really looked back.
“The longer the game went, the more we had control,” said Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler. “I thought we deserved to win.”
Carrick did not argue. United were overrun, out-thought and outplayed.
His frustration extended beyond the scoreline to the chaos around Gabriel’s aborted debut.
“He's a young boy, he's 15, and for me, definitely, and from a club point of view, looking after our younger players, their welfare, their wellbeing, their exposure, we've got to be really conscious of that in this situation,” he said.
But the reality is brutal. At Manchester United, everything comes back to results.
“Being here toughens you up over a period of time,” Carrick reflected. “It depends how you deal with it. You've got to deal with it in a way where you can cope with it and you can bring out the best in yourself. However you do that, with your motivation and the confidence deep within yourself to know we can win football matches.
“We've gone out of the cup tonight, and the feeling around the place feels bigger than that. I'm honest enough to say that's how it feels. But it doesn't have to be like that. If we win football matches again, it can go in a different direction.”
Right now, that feels a long way off.
Fulham, and a crossroads before the break
There is one game left before the international break: Fulham away on Sunday. It already feels like a line in the sand.
For the mood around the club, for the manager, for a dressing room that looks fragile, United badly need a win.
Jamie Redknapp, watching on for Sky Sports, did not sugarcoat it.
“Right now, they're miles off it,” he said. “It doesn't matter how good the manager is, if you don't have the right players it makes it really difficult.
“There's a reason why the other managers have struggled. Sooner or later the pressure's always going to come on.
“This weekend becomes a huge game. He doesn't need another poor result, otherwise all of a sudden you're going into the international break and everyone's talking about you. The winners tonight are the players who didn't play.”
Old Trafford has seen crises before. It has not seen many like this, with a 2-0 lead squandered, a fanbase boiling over and a club legend on the touchline insisting he does not feel the heat.
Fulham away will show whether anyone still believes him.
