Manchester United advanced to the FA Cup final as Victor Lindelof’s calm penalty kick helped them upset Brighton & Hove Albion 7-6 in penalties after a 0-0 stalemate over 120 minutes.
After Brighton winger Solly March missed his penalty, the Sweden centre-half converted superbly, setting up the first-ever Manchester derby FA Cup final between the Reds and City on 3 June.
Throughout the match, United had many chances to break the deadlock, the finest falling to Bruno Fernandes in the opening half in regular time and Marcus Rashford, whose extra-time shot was well saved by Robert Sanchez. During the 120 minutes of play, the Seagulls had numerous chances to score. The greatest came from substitute Deniz Undav, who got through on goal alongside David De Gea before his touch failed him down, enabling Diogo Dalot to make a critical tackle.
Marcus Rashford tried to signal his intentions early on with a dangerous run down the left flank, but his ball to Bruno Fernandes was intercepted and cleared away by the Seagulls’ defence. However, Brighton created the opening chance of the game when Antony took down Kaoru Mitoma on the edge of the box, resulting in a dangerous free-kick. Alexis MacAllister, the World Cup winner, stepped up and curved the ball around the Manchester United wall, but De Gea was able to get out and push the ball behind for a corner.
United swiftly responded with a blasting run down the right side from Antony, whose pass found Christian Eriksen in the centre of the pitch. The Dane just needed a split second to find the rebounding Fernandes, who tried to bend the ball beyond Robert Sanchez, but the Spaniard saved.
Just after the half-hour mark, Mitoma skated down the left channel and tried to cut inside for a shot, but was stopped by a well-timed tackle from Aaron-Wan Bissaka. The ball was passed to Enciso, who attempted to duplicate his long-range strike from the previous week against Chelsea, but his shot curved away from De Gea’s goal.
The Reds had three excellent chances to begin the scoring in the last minutes of the half. The Brazilian combo of Antony and Casemiro combined to put United skipper Fernandes via but our Portuguese magnifico’s low drive from a tight angle just rolled past the post, with Anthony Martial upset not to be picked out in the centre. In added time, Martial chipped over from an intriguing position before Eriksen’s lovely pass found Rashford on the left wing. The England international fired a low cross back to Eriksen, who scuffed the shot and was stopped by Sanchez’s boot.
The Reds got their chance to attack when Fernandes stole and won the ball back from left-back Pervis Estupinan, enabling Antony to pounce. The winger made his way through the Brighton penalty area before unleashing one of his trademark left-footed strikes, which Sanchez easily saved.
Rashford won a free kick on the edge of the box, and he and Fernandes collided, but it was the United captain who stood up to fire into the wall, then blasted the resulting rebound over the top when it came back at him.
The Seagulls continued to press the Reds’ backline in the closing stages of the game. Solly March received a pass on the right flank and went inside, eluding the defence while curling a shot past De Gea, who saved it low.The Spaniard had to react fast and scramble to grab the ball before Pascal Gross could follow up.
Substitute For the Reds, Jadon Sancho sought a late winner. Sancho’s shot took a tiny detour after teaming up with Dalot and Rashford as we entered the last 30 minutes.
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The Seagulls regained possession, with Mac Allister attempting to beat De Gea from long range, but his shot went over the crossbar. Then Moises Caicedo introduced Deniz Undaz as a substitute striker, but the German forward took a terrible touch, allowing Diogo Dalot to recover and make a critical challenge to keep the score equal.
United sought to break down the left wing, with Dalot and Sancho collaborating before Sancho floated the ball into the area for fellow replacement Marcel Sabitzer to grab a glancing header that crept beyond Sanchez’s far post.
Rashford was a minute away from scoring the game’s first goal with a minute remaining in the first period. Working with Fred and Sancho, the trio played some beautiful passes before the Reds’ top scorer this season attempted to smash the ball into the far corner, but Sanchez made the best save of the game, diving to his left and forcing the deflection effort beyond the post.
Brighton would be the first team to attempt a goal in the second session, just as they had done in the first. Solly March was capable of outmuscle Fred before the Seagulls winger hit the ball with his preferred left foot right into De Gea’s palms.
The odds were stacked against the Reds, given United’s recent shootout record and Brighton getting the privilege to kick in front of their fans. Before Casemiro, Gross, and Dalot held their nerve, Mac Allister sent De Gea the wrong way. Undav scored, but Sancho, who missed a spot against Italy in the European Championship final shootout at Wembley, equalised with a beautiful technique.
Pervis Estupinan and Marcus Rashford scored, as did Lewis Dunk and Marcel Sabitzer, albeit Sanchez deflected the Austrian’s effort.
So we went to sudden death, Adam Webster beat De Gea, and Wout Weghorst was as calm with an identical spot-kick. When March flew over the bar, it was all down to Lindelof. The ice-cold defender only needed a short run to shoot past Sanchez and send United back to Wembley for the final against Manchester City in five weeks.
