Manchester United's biggest improvement might be down to the one change Ineos insisted on

The nature of Manchester United's defeat to Brighton on Saturday and the doom cycle that never seems far away from this club has made sieving the positives out of the weekend a difficult task.

United have been undeniably better in their first two league games of this season than they were for most of 2023/24, but that has only produced one win and one defeat. And those improvements aren't enough if this team continues to make defensive errors in the way that they did at the Amex.

They let the game open up late on, chasing a win that for the last 10 minutes felt more likely to end in defeat, then allowed themselves to become dishevelled defending an injury-time corner. As Joao Pedro's header flashed past Andre Onana, any immediate desire to alight on positives had been parked.

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But that doesn't mean that there weren't things for Erik ten Hag to take from the game. United had more control in the first half, they looked a threat on the break in the second half and Amad took his goal well. But for an unfortunate or unnecessary (depending on your view) offside they would have got at least a point, if not all three.

Maybe the biggest positive from the games against Fulham and Brighton has been the way United have pressed. It has been more aggressive than last season and more structured, which has made it more difficult to play through.

Ten Hag would point to injuries to explain why this element of United's game never really worked last season. They weren't compact enough to press successfully and did so only sporadically. So far this season, there appears a renewed commitment to press