'Gary Neville was wrong' - Man United legend's Antonio Conte theory comes back to haunt him

A number of Manchester United supporters have criticised the club's decision not to turn to Antonio Conte, following Saturday's 4-0 hammering by Brighton at the Amex Stadium.

United, who have just one game left in what has proven to be a wretched campaign, saw their Champions League aspirations for next season officially come to an end in dramatic fashion on the south coast. Trailing 1-0 at half-time, courtesy of Moises Caicedo's first goal in Brighton colours, United crumbled after the break, conceding a further three goals by the time the clock struck the hour mark.

Defeat to Graham Potter's side marked United's fifth successive defeat away from home, highlighting the state of their current troubles. They were second best at the Amex Stadium and could have lost by an even greater margin.

READ MORE: Manchester United cannot ignore away fans' chants after latest horror show at Brighton

Furthermore, it also further portrayed interim manager Ralf Rangnick in a negative light. His spell in charge as interim boss has not had the desired impact and almost every supporter is glad that there is only one game left of his tenure.

Appointed in November to succeed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, United passed on the chance to appoint Conte just a few weeks earlier. Solskjaer was under enormous pressure after the 5-0 defeat to Liverpool in late October and, as revealed by the Manchester Evening News, Conte, who was out of work at the time, was keen to succeed the Norwegian in the event of him being axed.

United stood by Solskjaer a little while longer. By the time he was sacked, Conte had been installed as Tottenham Hotspur's head coach.

Spurs have made rapid improvements under the lively Italian and Saturday evening's 1-1 draw with