Manchester United secured their place in the FA Cup final as they beat Brighton on penalties at Wembley Stadium on Sunday evening.
Solly March missed the only penalty of the shootout, with Victor Lindelof scoring the winning penalty in sudden death.
Brighton started well
Roberto De Zerbi’s men made the better start of the two sides and could have taken the lead in the eighth minute when David De Gea tipped behind Alexis MacAllister’s effort on the United goal.
United were then the ones to be denied the opening goal just six minutes later when Brighton keeper Robert Sanchez kept out Bruno Fernandes’ low shot from the edge of the box.
Both sides got openings they should have scored in the first half.
First, Danny Welbeck failed to sort his feet out from Solly March’s low cross, and then it was Fernandez who got into a glorious position inside the penalty box but dragged his shot wide.
The Red Devils should have gone into the break with their noses ahead but they wasted two golden opportunities in stoppage time as the score remained goalless.
Brighton should have taken the lead right at the hour mark but it was De Gea who once again kept parity with an outstanding save from Julio Enciso’s effort that was heading into the net.
It was Brighton who finished the ninety minutes on top with two more half chances but the Seagulls looked short on applying the final touches as it ended 0-0.
Brighton press but can’t score in extra time
The Seagulls were also the better side in the first half of extra time, dominating possession in the middle of the pitch and coming up with some wonderful interplay going into the final third.
However, De Zerbi’s men came up short time and again in the final third. In an entertaining watch, Sanchez denied Marcus Rashford right at the end of the half to keep the score goalless.
It was end-to-end in the second half of extra time, but once again, neither side could hit the target as the game went to penalties.
Photo credit: IMAGO / News Images
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Courtesy : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/man-ud-beat-brighton-on-penalties-to-seal-fa-cup-final-spot-20230423-WST-429806.html