Ruben Amorim has heaped praise on Bryan Mbeumo after the forward continued his fantastic start to life at Manchester United with a brace in the 4-2 victory over Brighton on Saturday. The 26-year-old netted his third and fourth Premier League goals of the season as Amorim’s side built on their recent wins over Sunderland and Liverpool with another triumph at Old Trafford.
Mbeumo is fast becoming a United hero following Brentford move
Mbeumo has quickly become a fan favourite amongst the United faithful following his summer move from Brentford. After scoring his first league goal in the last-gasp 3-2 victory over Burnley on 30 August, the Cameroon international then netted the opener in his side’s momentous 2-1 win over bitter rivals Liverpool last Sunday. And picking up from where he left off at Anfield, Mbeumo scored twice in the second half of what was a pulsating encounter with Brighton, with Brazil duo Matheus Cunha and Casemiro also finding the back of the net.
AdvertisementAFPCameroon international receiving love from United fans and Amorim
Having already struck up exciting partnerships with both Amad Diallo and fellow new boy Cunha, Mbeumo is not only being lauded by the United supporters but by manager Amorim, who paid tribute to his in-form charge after the Brighton game.
In his post-match press conference, Amorim said of Mbeumo: “He’s a working machine. He’s so good in transitions. He’s improving when we are organising the final third. The connection with Amad, it’s really hard to beat these two guys because they change position, they are really fast, they are good in one against one.
“My role was, as a manager, to explain what I want from him. But it was more the club. And you guys. We can struggle a lot, but it’s Manchester United. When Manchester United is there, and when we feel that this player wants to come here, no matter what, no matter what the position, no matter if it's Champions League or not, we also give everything to bring these kind of guys, and that was the case.”
Amorim says United produced a 'complete' display against Brighton
Mbeumo’s heroics against both Liverpool and Brighton have played a key role in helping change the mood at United, who have now won their last three games following what was an inconsistent start to the 2025-26 season. While the victory at Liverpool – the club’s first since 2016 – was built on rapid counter-attacks from the likes of Mbeumo, Cunha and Amad, Amorim says the win over Brighton was a more “complete” performance from his side.
Asked if he felt beating Brighton was a bigger “statement” than beating Liverpool, considering the Seagulls had won their previous three games at Old Trafford, Amorim agreed by saying: “I have that feeling. I think [it] was a more complete performance. You can say whatever you want to say against Liverpool, but they didn't deserve to lose that game. We deserve to win, but they didn't deserve to lose. I think today, we did a little bit of everything. We had the ball, create chances, we defend high, we defend low. So, when it’s more complete, it's not a statement, but I feel more complete also as a manager. So today I think I like today more than last weekend.”
Getty Images SportPortuguese believes fans are seeing benefits of no European football
And when asked if fans are now seeing the benefits of him having all week to work with the players, with United not competing in any European competitions this season, Amorim added: “I think you can sense that, of course, the results now, you can feel that. But the team, since we started this season, the team play so much better compared to last season. We have different players, more suited to this type of style. But it's a big difference. Every team that plays in this league, and has to play in Europe, it's so much harder. And we felt that last year. So, I said that last year, I will say the same thing, [it] is a big advantage to have just one game per week, and we have to take advantage of that.”
