Manchester United had their hopes of securing a second goal against Brighton dashed after a rare offside decision led to its disallowance.
The Red Devils believed they had gone ahead 2-1 in the 70th minute when Alejandro Garnacho tapped in a cross from Bruno Fernandes at the far post. Garnacho, who had come off the bench for the second time that week, celebrated the goal alongside his teammates.
However, the goal was ruled out after VAR revealed that fellow substitute Joshua Zirkzee had made slight contact with the ball before it crossed the line. The replays indicated that Zirkzee’s knee barely missed crossing the line, and crucially, he was in an offside position ahead of Garnacho when he made contact.
As a result, VAR determined Zirkzee was offside, leading to the goal being disallowed.
The Premier League later clarified the decision on their Match Centre Twitter account, stating: “Zirkzee’s goal was initially awarded on the field. VAR checked for a possible offside and recommended the goal be disallowed. The referee then restarted play with a Brighton free-kick.”
Earlier in the match, Manchester United had fallen behind in the first half when former United player Danny Welbeck scored his 100th career goal. United managed to equalize through Amad Diallo, who was making his first Premier League start of the season.
Unfortunately for Erik ten Hag’s team, Brighton had the final say, with Joao Pedro scoring a late winner. Left unmarked in the penalty area, Pedro headed the ball past Andre Onana, securing a 2-1 victory for Brighton.
