Redknapp slams Yoro and Heaven after United squander two-goal lead to Brighton

Manchester United surrendered a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 to Brighton in the Carabao Cup, with Jamie Redknapp singling out defenders Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven for their roles in Pascal Gross’ equaliser that turned the tie on its head.

United had raced into a commanding 2-0 advantage inside the opening ten minutes, only to collapse as Brighton mounted a stunning comeback. Gross’ leveller proved the turning point, and substitute Maxim De Cuyper completed the turnaround just five minutes later to seal a defeat that raises serious questions about Michael Carrick’s long-term future at Old Trafford.

Breaking down the Gross goal, Redknapp was unsparing in his assessment of both young defenders. Heaven, he argued, failed to read the danger and was caught flat-footed as the Brighton midfielder advanced into the penalty area unchallenged. “Ayden Heaven now has to sense — instead of the companion doesn’t get the ball, he now has to get across and sprint 20 yards to the centre midfield player that’s going to score there, Pascal Gross,” Redknapp said. “Instead, he’s on his heels, he doesn’t anticipate the danger.”

Yoro fared no better in Redknapp’s analysis. The France international allowed his marker to drift free at a critical moment, and his attempt to recover was, in the pundit’s view, wholly inadequate. “What Leny Yoro does, I’ve no idea. What kind of an effort is this to stop the ball as it comes in?” Redknapp said. “This isn’t a five-a-side competition, this is a big competition.”

The former Liverpool midfielder went further, warning that such displays carry real consequences for both players’ prospects at the club. “You’ve got to go, you’ve got to be aggressive — both of them there, they showed their inexperience and if that doesn’t change, they won’t play for Man United regularly,” Redknapp continued. “It’s as simple as that — I don’t care what the price tag is on them. That summed it up for me — that was the difference between Brighton’s defending and theirs.”

Carrick, when asked after the match whether he had been sold short by the squad available to him this season, pushed back on the suggestion, though the nature of the defeat will do little to ease the pressure building around his position.