Fuming Brentford boss Thomas Frank is expecting an apology from referees’ chief Howard Webb after seeing his side slip to a controversial Premier League defeat at Newcastle.

The Bees went down 1-0 at St James’ Park on Saturday evening after Callum Wilson converted a second-half penalty awarded for a foul by keeper Mark Flekken on Anthony Gordon.

Frank said: “It’s so rare that I complain about it because it’s human beings who make mistakes and we all make mistakes so that happens. But it’s extra frustrating when we do so many things right and lose because of that.

“We just got told four weeks ago when Kevin Schade went through against Tottenham, where the keeper took him out, that no, he pulled out before, so it can’t be a penalty. Mark pulled out before, now a penalty.

“It’s not the ref who has given it but the linesman, and he needs to be absolutely bang-on, 100 per cent sure if you want to decide an even game between two teams that gave each other a fantastic game, in fact.

“That means that VAR have checked, but can’t do anything because it’s not a clear and obvious failure. I’m pretty sure that Howard Webb will come back to us and say ‘Sorry, we made a mistake’.”

The penalty – one of two awarded by Craig Pawson, although the second was rescinded after he was advised to review it – came minutes after Wilson had seen a “goal” disallowed for a foul on Flekken.

The England striker dispatched his 64th-minute spot-kick with supreme confidence to claim his 14th goal in his last 17 league appearances in the final game before Newcastle launch their Champions League campaign at AC Milan on Tuesday evening.

Wilson put pen to paper on a one-year contract extension on Friday and Howe, who first signed him for Bournemouth in July 2014, has seen him grow during the intervening period.

He said: “He’s gone from, when I first signed him, a Championship player to now an international, a Premier League player, a Champions League player.

“But his character is still the same. He laughs, he jokes, he’s positive, he’s kind. He’s a really good team-mate, he’s a parent and he’s a really good father to his kids and he’s a husband, so a lot has changed in his life, but I think the general character around the person is exactly the same.”

Howe, who confirmed that Brazilian midfielder Joelinton will miss the trip to San Siro with a recurrence of a knee injury which will keep him out for several weeks, was delighted to see his team end its three-game losing streak.

He said: “It was a massive win for us, we needed it. I don’t think it was us at our free-flowing best, but there was a lot to like about the resilience, the defensive mindset, the work rate, the commitment.

“It’s not always going to be an open, attractive game and today it probably wasn’t. Brentford made it very difficult for us, but we certainly defended very well and it was great to see us keep a clean sheet.”

Solihull Moors extended their unbeaten start in the Vanarama National League after a hard-fought 1-0 win over Kidderminster at Aggborough.

Matty Warburton grabbed the only goal of the game in the 15th minute when he headed home from a cross by Jamey Osborne, but Moors were indebted to goalkeeper Tommy Simkin for preserving the three points.

Simkin saved superbly to deny both Jack Lambert and Gerry McDonagh from point-blank range, while Harriers came close again when Amari Morgan-Smith blazed his shot over the crossbar.

Christian Oxlade-Chamberlain saw the hosts’ last chance to claim a point tipped over the bar by Simkin to leave Kidderminster still hunting their first home win.

Callum Wilson sent Newcastle into Champions League action on the back of a first Premier League win since the opening game of the season as they edged past Brentford at St James’ Park.

The England striker’s 64th-minute penalty proved enough to clinch the points for the Magpies, who had not won since they trounced Aston Villa 5-1 on August 12 and had since slipped to back-to-back defeats by Manchester City, Liverpool and Brighton.

They will now head for Italy for their Champions League opener against AC Milan on Tuesday evening in positive mood after a victory which was achieved without the rested Sandro Tonali and Alexander Isak as head coach Eddie Howe used the depth of his squad.

The Bees will perhaps feel aggrieved at both the penalty decision and the fact that they gave at least as good as they got for long periods in front of a crowd of 51,670, although ultimately they were unable to trouble keeper Nick Pope often enough.

Brentford started brightly with Aaron Hickey and Mathias Jensen combining well down the right, and it took a good near-post save by Pope to keep out Hickey’s fourth-minute attempt from a tight angle after he had been played in by Jensen.

Newcastle enjoyed an escape when Yoane Wissa was unable to make contact with Jensen’s teasing cross as he slid in, but it was the Magpies who very nearly took the lead with 28 minutes gone.

After Fabian Schar’s long-range attempt had been deflected behind, Sven Botman got his head to Kieran Trippier’s corner and flicked the ball to the back post where Bruno Guimaraes saw his close-range effort repelled by keeper Mark Flekken.

Howe’s men, who had been methodical rather than dynamic to that point, were coming to life and Brentford’s problems increased when Rico Henry limped off with what appeared to be a knee injury and was replaced by Mads Roerslev.

Schar had to block a stoppage-time Wissa shot after he had been played in down the left by Vitaly Janelt, but there was nothing to choose between the sides when the half-time whistle sounded.

The second half unfolded much as the first had ended, with Newcastle enjoying the greater share of possession but unable to move the ball quickly or decisively enough to pierce the massed ranks of blue shirts. Brentford were playing on the counter but lacking precision when it mattered.

Schar and Harvey Barnes delivered menacing crosses in quick succession, but neither was able to pick out a team-mate, and although the Magpies did have the ball in the net with 57 minutes gone, referee Craig Pawson disallowed Wilson’s close-range finish for a foul on Flekken during the build-up.

However, they finally forced their way in front seven minutes later with Flekken and Wilson once again the central characters in the drama.

The Netherlands international keeper’s clumsy challenge on Anthony Gordon as full-back Hickey attempted to shield the ball back to him was adjudged by Pawson to be worthy of a penalty.

Wilson, who was made to wait before taking the spot-kick, did not waver as he blasted it high to Flekken’s left to open the scoring.

He thought he had been handed a chance to repeat the dose with 11 minutes remaining when Pawson pointed to the spot for a second time after Barnes’ header had hit the unwitting Bryan Mbeumo’s arm but after being asked to review his decision, the official changed his mind – although Newcastle eased across the finishing line with few real scares.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s double ensured Inter Milan continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 5-1 drubbing against bitter rivals AC Milan.

Inter got off to a perfect start in the Milan derby with two goals from Mkhitaryan and Marcus Thuram, before Rafael Leao gave Milan some hope with a quick finish after the break.

Mkhitaryan earned his brace before Hakan Calhanoglu’s penalty and Davide Frattesi’s goal ensured there was no way back for Milan, who now face Newcastle in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Three points means Inter have now won all four of their games in Serie A this season and remain top of the table by two points.

Mkhitaryan set the tone in the fifth minute with a clean first-time effort from close range, which found the bottom corner and the goal stood despite a VAR check for a foul in the build-up.

The former Manchester United and Arsenal midfielder came close to a second with his header flashing wide of goal and Federico Dimarco then fired a free-kick over the crossbar before Theo Hernandez tried his luck for Milan, but his effort rolled past the post.

Thuram struck to double Inter’s advantage in the 38th minute with a stunning strike across the face of goal and into the top corner.

Milan had a chance after being awarded a free-kick outside the box just before the break, but Olivier Giroud blasted the ball over the bar.

Despite a bright start from Inter in the second half, it was Milan who pulled one back in the 58th minute after a superb through-ball from Giroud found Leao and his deflected shot landed in the net.

Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan made a good dive to his right to deny Carlos Augusto, who smashed the ball from outside the box, as Inter ramped up the pressure.

Nerazzurri struck again in the 68th minute after a great team move saw Lautaro Martinez lay the ball off to Mkhitaryan before the midfielder found the bottom corner, helped by a deflection, to earn his brace.

Milan’s misery continued when Hernandez conceded a penalty after catching Martinez in the box and Calhanoglu made no mistake from the spot in the 79th minute, blasting the ball low underneath Maignan.

Frattesi capped off a dominant evening for Inter after bursting through the Milan defence to latch onto the end of Mkhitaryan’s well-timed pass and tucked the ball home.

Graham Alexander hit out at his MK Dons side for a lack of commitment in the first half of their 2-1 home defeat to Stockport.

Former Dons player Louie Barry scored his fifth goal of the season for the visitors before the home side equalised through Mo Eisa.

Stockport went back in front on the stroke of half-time though through Nick Powell and this time there was no way back for the hosts.

Alexander said: “The first half cost us. There was no intensity, no speed or no commitment to what we’ve been doing of late.

“We can’t lie to anybody and think we deserved anything from that game today.

“The way we started was really slow, took too many touches and delayed everything.

“If you don’t commit as hard as you have to in professional football, you get beat.

“The game was there for us as a team after last week’s performance, but we just didn’t get going in the first half.

“In the second half, there was an increase in intensity, but we didn’t trouble the goalkeeper or their goal enough to get anything from the game. The right team won today.

“I’m raw because I’m frustrated that a group of players who have done so well so far this season have not got anywhere near the levels we have done in previous games.”

Stockport manager Dave Challinor praised his players as built on their 2-1 win over AFC Wimbledon.

The two wins have followed a sticky start to the season, leaving Challinor delighted with the way his side have bounced back.

“We should take more confidence from the fact of how we went about it,” said Challinor

“Two big wins, especially on the back of what we’d had previously and especially on the back of being a little bit scarred, I suppose, by some of the games earlier on.

“To get those confidence-boosting wins like we have is massively important going into a massive game next week.

“The easiest thing for us today would be potentially to have gone 3-5-2 to match the systems and it becomes who’s better at the system. But we thought we can tweak the system in terms of pushing Powell higher up to become a 4-3-3.

“I’d like to think we can be adaptable. We’ve got the personnel to play as a four and as a three, but it’s ultimately about winning football matches and we’ve won the last two in fractionally different types of that formation, asking different questions of the opposition.”

Livingston manager David Martindale says he was conscious of the impact a delayed kick-off in their match against Ross County would have on the fans more than his players.

The Lions’ coach broke down a few miles north of Inverness, leading to a knock-on impact on their arrival in Dingwall and the starting time for the game.

However, when the match did eventually kick off 15 minutes late Livingston started well, and despite going behind to Simon Murray’s goal they were still able to earn a point after Bruce Anderson found the net.

“It probably had an effect on us, but how big I don’t know,” Martindale explained.

“We struggled to get accommodation. Inverness was fully booked and the closest we could get was Aviemore.

“You are trying to put the fans first as well as having player safety in mind with warming up. We needed an hour, so once we got here we could figure out the kick-off time.

“I don’t think the fans will be overly annoyed that it was a 15-minute delay, but if it had been 45 minutes that could have had a bigger impact, so I was very conscious of trying to get on the park as quickly as possible.

“Coming away with a point from Ross County, I probably would have taken that coming in, although I would have liked a clean sheet.”

For County boss Malky Mackay, there was an element of frustration over taking the lead and not being able to see the match out for all three points.

However, having seen Livingston up close for the first time this season, he suspects it will be a good result for the Staggies in time.

“The initial feeling after the game was that it was two points lost – but I think if I look back on this later in the season it will be a point gained,” Mackay said.

“Livingston will do well this year in this league. Davie knows how to put a team out and how to get points. I was so enthused by my team’s attitude and their willingness to keep striving to get three points.

“I’ve got three centre-backs who were absolutely immense, but all three of them switched off and made the wrong decision and they got their goal.

“I don’t want to be too harsh on them, because as the season goes on they are going to keep clean sheets for us.”

Manager Valerien Ismael believes Watford’s dramatic late 2-0 home victory over 10-man Birmingham will give his side a huge lift.

The Hornets went into the game having won just one of their opening five matches and appeared set for more frustration before the visitors lost Lee Buchanan to a second yellow card in the 88th minute.

Watford took full advantage, scoring twice in added time through Mileta Rajovic and Ryan Andrews to give them a first win since the opening day of the season.

Ismael said: “I think that if we have a review of the first five games we should have more points but we made a lot of mistakes.

“Today was important for the mental side that we finally got the reward. We forced the red card and we forced the goals.

“Hopefully that will give the confidence to our players for the next game.”

Ismael was full of praise for substitute Yaser Asprilla, who drew the foul from Buchanan that led to the Birmingham full-back’s dismissal before teeing up Rajovic for the opening goal.

He added: “Everyone can see he has the quality to be a key player. He can be something special but sometimes we just missed the outcome.

“We work with him every week, we speak with him and say it is now time to step up otherwise it is just entertainment and finally he had a big impact on the game.

“And then he combined the both, the entertainment with the ability to make the difference.”

Rajovic had scored twice on his debut against Coventry before the break and found the target again with a powerful header.

Andrews, 19, slotted home five minutes later for his first senior goal.

The outcome meant Birmingham suffered a first league defeat of the season.

Blues manager John Eustace, a former Watford player, could not disguise his disappointment at the manner of his side’s defeat and was critical of referee Keith Stroud.

The match official issued seven yellow cards to the visitors, including the two that led to Buchanan’s departure.

Eustace said: “To come away with no points is really frustrating.

“I was disappointed with the inconsistency of the referee but it is what it is. No excuses, I still expect us to defend properly with 10 men, like we did with 11.

“They managed the game very well without getting punished.

“I was really pleased with the performance and I was very proud of the efforts of the group.

“We limited a very good squad of players to nothing. The way we defended, the way we carried out our game-plan was excellent.

“To go down to 10 men, with four or five minutes to go, was obviously very frustrating.

“But I am disappointed we conceded because I still felt we could defend the cross better.”

Gillingham manager Neil Harris felt his team were “miles better” than Morecambe in their 2-1 win that returned them to the top of the League Two table.

George Lapslie fired the hosts in front from close range early on, but the visitors equalised two minutes later through leading scorer Michael Mellon.

Connor Mahoney wrapped up the win after 24 minutes with a sensational curling effort that soared into the top corner.

Mellon was later dismissed for a second yellow card and Harris felt his side could have been out of sight by half-time.

“I’m delighted to win the game,” he said. “I thought we were miles better than the opponent.

“I’m really disappointed with the goal we conceded, but other than that the first-half performance was the best in my time at the football club.

“We dominated and we should have been four or five up.

“We worked all week on our attacking play and the chances we created today were clear-cut. How the game only has a one-goal swing is bizarre.

“We scored two really good goals. The first, from a set piece, was something we organised on the training pitch. The second was a moment of magic from Connor.

“With young players in the team, we’ll turn the ball over at times and we’ll make judgement errors.

“We conceded a really sloppy goal today when we’ve had a clean-sheet mentality at the club.

“There were moments where the youngsters could have taken a bit more control today, but experienced players like Shaun Williams and Scott Malone gave us the composure and quality we needed.”

But Derek Adams said Morecambe were “well in” the game.

“If Gillingham are the team who are top of the league at this moment of time, then we don’t have an awful lot to fear. That’s plain and obvious,” he said.

“For large spells of the game, even when we went down to 10 men, we had good opportunities. We didn’t feel that we were under great pressure.

“It was a strange game because we were well in it. We conceded from a set-play, but then Michael scores a great goal and at 1-1 we looked like the team in the ascendancy.

“We had some really good moments in the game. Then we allow their player to come in off the sideline and shoot into the top corner, but even then, it was a game that we still could have got back in to.”

On Mellon’s sending-off, Adams added: “He’s going over the top and trying to have a shot, but he and the defender collide at the same time.

“I’ve spoken to the referee, and I’ve watched it on the video, and it’s not a second yellow card.”

Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom let rip into Premier League officiating after he watched his team concede twice in stoppage time to lose 2-1 at Tottenham.

The Blades were on course for a maiden win since their return to the Premier League after Gustavo Hamer fired them in front after 73 minutes in the capital.

A minimum of 12 minutes were added on at the end of the 90 and Spurs punished the newly-promoted side, with Richarlison levelling in the eighth added minute before Dejan Kulusevski grabbed a dramatic winner two minutes later.

There was still time for Oli McBurnie to receive his marching orders for a second yellow card and the United manager bemoaned the display of referee Peter Bankes following their latest last-gasp defeat.

“Something needs to be done now and this is not me moaning. I said it (at) half-time and when we were 1-0 up as well. The focus is on time-wasting, so the referees are dictating how we play,” Heckingbottom insisted.

“We set up from the back, then Spurs push forward and then that dictates how we play, but no, we’re just told to play long. You can’t do it.

“Wes (Foderingham) got a yellow card for handling outside the box and then got threatened with a sending-off (for time-wasting) you can’t do it.

“The officiating is appalling and it’s not about the football decisions. It’s just game management.

“My worry is all the focus is on yellow cards for time-wasting and when I talked to the referees, they haven’t got a clue what I’m talking about. They’re officiating the game, they simply do not know the game.

“We need to sort that and sort that quick. It’s ruining the spectacle and then to sum it all up we get Oli McBurnie sent off for telling the referee someone is pulling his shirt.

“We’ve just seen someone lead with an elbow into our goalkeeper who needs stitches and that’s the same offence. What’s going on? Seriously what’s going on with our game?”

It was a different story for Tottenham after a euphoric victory inspired by substitute Richarlison following a difficult week.

Richarlison had been pictured in tears after being substituted in Brazil’s 5-1 win over Bolivia and revealed in midweek that he would seek “psychological help” following a turbulent time in his personal life.

After scoring only once in the Premier League last season following his £60million switch from Everton last summer, Richarlison grabbed the leveller with a header from Ivan Perisic’s corner to set up a grandstand finish in N17.

Two minutes later and a slick team move ended with Richarlison teeing up Kulusevski, who fired through Jack Robinson’s legs to spark wild celebrations before Spurs captain Son Heung-min urged the Brazilian to soak up the applause at full-time.

“Richy was great,” Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou said.

“I thought all the subs who came on really helped, but that’s been a consistent theme.

“Yeah for Richy, I think it’s the point I was trying to make yesterday. For him to understand that you try and maintain a balance in life and his football hasn’t been that bad. He’s still been contributing for us.

“Sometimes when you struggle with certain parts of your life, you let it go into other areas, but the football is one area where he can control and he works hard every day in training and really got his rewards today.

“And hopefully that gives him a bit more of a settled feel to deal with the other areas in his life. For everyone, it’s about not letting it overwhelm you and hopefully a day like today helps him.”

Crawley boss Scott Lindsey admitted his overriding feeling was one of “satisfaction” after substitute Klaidi Lolos’ stoppage-time winner continued their fine home form.

The Red Devils went behind to a Charlie Jolley goal midway through the first half but Ronan Darcy replied just after the hour mark.

Sam Taylor restored Rovers advantage with a fine finish in the 67th minute, but Nick Tsaroulla made it 2-2 just two minutes later.

Lolos’ winner, in the sixth minute of stoppage time, was his third for the club and Lindsey said:” Satisfaction is the overriding feeling.

“When you play against a team who score relatively early and bank and sit in, it can become frustrating.

“We wanted to stick to what we do and what we work on. We knew they would potentially do that.

“To score three goals against a team who nullify a lot of spaces and bank in really deep is satisfying.

“We didn’t have a lot of goal-scoring opportunities, but we were clinical in three moments.”

Crawley have only lost two of 16 home league games since Lindsey took charge eight months ago and he added:”I’ve always felt this is a hard place for opposing teams to come and try and get points from us.”

Tranmere have now lost seven games in a row in all competitions and interim manager Nigel Adkins admitted:” It was harsh to lose right at the death.”

Adkins felt Tsaroulla was a handful for his men all game and said:” Their left wing-back gave us problems; I knew Crawley have players to give us problems.

“They are a team in form, but we put in a lot of graft and effort and are disappointed to give away three goals.

Rovers are only off the bottom of the table on goal difference and Adkins added:” We have to learn the lesson.

“We will reflect on it on Monday. We certainly created chances and I want us to be an aggressive team.

“The frustrating bit is that we have conceded three goals in the manner we have.”

Mansfield boss Nigel Clough admits his side were fortunate to claim a point after they struck late to draw 1-1 at Colchester.

Davis Keillor-Dunn converted a 90th-minute equaliser for the Stags from close range, after the home defence had failed to deal with Aden Flint’s flick-on in the area from Callum Johnson’s cross.

It preserved Mansfield’s unbeaten run, after Joe Taylor had given Colchester a 30th-minute lead when he clinically finished, from Arthur Read’s fine pass.

Clough said “I’m not sure how we got a point.

“I don’t think we deserved anything all day.

“I don’t think we did anything really that we’ve done in the first nine games.

“In the first half, we had an element of control without really hurting them, every time we got into the final third.

“We mis-placed a pass, gave it away, we didn’t cross properly.

“The goal sort of summed it up; a young player making a mistake and giving the ball away.

“Once he’s mis-controlled it, you do everything you can not to concede a goal.

“We massively missed Stephen Quinn’s composure today.

“But we put Flinty (Aden Flint) up front and it gives you a different option, to go through him.

“I’m not sure too many people in a red shirt actually recognised that Flinty had gone up front!

“They didn’t play the ball towards him for about 15 minutes!”

Mansfield goalkeeper Christy Pym had twice denied Taylor, shortly before Colchester’s top scorer fired the hosts ahead with a smart finish.

Zach Mitchell and Samson Tovide both went close for the U’s after half-time and substitute John Akinde’s header was nodded off the line by Aaron Lewis, before Keillor-Dunn salvaged Mansfield a point.

Colchester boss Ben Garner was disappointed his side could not hold on for victory.

Garner said: “We deserved to win the game.

“The biggest positive today was the togetherness of the team and the spirit.

“It was another performance that deserved a clean sheet against a top side, with one of the strongest squads in the division.

“Nigel’s built that team over probably three years now.

“I think our execution in the final third was the one thing that needed polishing up today.

“For the areas and situations we got in, we didn’t get our technique right and our decision right.

“They’re things that we can work on and we can improve.

“We’re building something here – you can feel it.

“The team is coming on and it’s gelling.

“The supporters were magnificent and it’s disappointing that we couldn’t give them three points to go home with.

“But we take a point, we move on and we have to channel that disappointment in the next two games.”

Reading manager Ruben Selles praised his side’s character – on and off the pitch – after they secured a 2-1 comeback victory over Bolton in League One.

The Trotters took the lead through top-scorer Dion Charles in the 20th minute, straight after the game had resumed after a three-minute break.

The delay had been caused by home fans throwing tennis balls on to the pitch in protest at the running of the club by Chinese owner Dai Yongge and the subsequent three-point English Football League deduction in midweek.

Reading dominated much of the game and were rewarded towards the end, when Charlie Savage levelled and substitute Caylon Vickers snatched the late winner.

Wanderers also had defender Eoin Toal sent off for a second yellow card.

“I’m really proud of the players,” Selles said.

“They have showed me that not only as footballers but also throughout the entire week. They have just focused on this game and on the things that we can affect. It is important to get the win and also the way we do it.

“The whole squad has all committed to our task and, for me, it was as much about the victory as the team spirit today.

“There is a big feeling of togetherness in the dressing room. That’s why we can get through everything that is put in front of us. Every time they step on the pitch, they want to make a difference.”

Of the fans’ actions and Charles’ immediate strike afterwards, Selles said: “We knew that the protest was coming. I don’t want to make excuses for it (the goal).

“It was more a disconnection from us, we’d had problems in that area before. But the fans have been supporting the team and me personally in every sort of situation that we have been in.”

Bolton dropped from second place to seventh after the defeat.

“I’m absolutely baffled as to how we ended up losing the game,” manager Ian Evatt said.

“We had so many critical chances and the game should have been out of sight for us at half-time.

“You can’t afford to miss those opportunities – one, maybe, but the two, three, four that we missed just isn’t OK.

“And away from home, if you don’t take those opportunities, you give the opposition a little bit of sugar and galvanise them and their crowd.

“Then you get a shot from distance (Savage’s goal) and that changes the entire momentum of the game.

“Then, we didn’t wrestle it back. We wobbled and we conceded a second. It’s absolutely crazy that we lose that game when we had created so many chances.

“We spoke about it in the week (Reading’s points deduction). When you get those, it creates a sort of siege mentality that they’re going to have.”

Erik ten Hag says Manchester United must respond with character and togetherness after a galling loss to Brighton on an afternoon when he regarded the booing of Rasmus Hojlund’s withdrawal as a positive.

After a promising first season under the Dutchman, a number of off-field issues at Old Trafford have been compounded by poor performances and results on the pitch.

Already beaten away to Tottenham and Arsenal, Saturday’s meek 3-1 home loss to Brighton meant the Red Devils have lost three of their first five matches for the first time in the Premier League era.

“Definitely that is something that bothers me,” manager Ten Hag said of the results. “But also I have to see the way we play.

“But finally it’s about character then. Now we have to see how strong we are, how the team sticks together and which players are standing up and showing the character and leading the team.

“Because in all the games, all the games but especially the games today, against Arsenal and Forest, we have seen we can play very good and we can create a lot of chances.

“But, yes, there are also some improvements to make. That is definitely the case and now we have to step up.”

Danny Welbeck put Brighton ahead against his former club before Marcus Rashford’s effort was deflected onto the woodwork and Hojlund’s first goal for his new club was ruled out by the VAR.

Pascal Gross and substitute Joao Pedro put the visitors further ahead in the second half at a stunned Old Trafford, where substitute Hannibal Mejbri’s exceptional first United goal did little to lift the mood.

There were boos at the final whistle and even louder jeers earlier in the second half when Ten Hag replaced lively full debutant Hojlund with Anthony Martial.

“I think it was positive,” the manager said of the reaction to the substitution. “You see that the fans from the first moment in Old Trafford, the reception for him was great.

“I think he performed very well, so I think it’s good that they gave this signal, this message. It will give him belief, Rasmus.

“But everyone knows he came in with a small issue. We built him over the last three, four weeks.

“He’s not ready for a whole game and we have many games to play in short notice, so we have to build him also in fitness.”

It has been a poor start to the season in all departments, but Ten Hag dismissed the notion that United are in crisis ahead of Wednesday’s tough-looking Champions League group opener at Bayern Munich.

“No, but we have to be very disappointed,” he said. “And we have to be very annoyed with ourselves because at United the demand is you win games.”

This loss ended United’s 31-match unbeaten home run in all competitions and saw them lose a Premier League match at Old Trafford for the first time since Ten Hag’s opening game.

Brighton were the victors that day and celebrated a second-ever Old Trafford win on Saturday, when they made it four top-flight wins in a row against the Red Devils.

Roberto De Zerbi’s brilliant side shone despite making six changes in the north west against a side constructed at a far greater cost.

“The football is nice because the small team can win in every moment against a great team,” the Brighton boss said.

“But I think Brighton is becoming not a big, big team but it’s not a surprise.

“The quality of the players of Brighton is very high and the organisation of the club. The possibility to manage two players per position is difficult.

“I don’t know the problems of Man United. I can explain my team.

“We are used to working in our style, we are playing with courage because we defended in Old Trafford man-to-man all the time.

“We are building our season in this way.”

Carlos Corberan insisted his West Brom side should have had at least one penalty to show for an improved second-half performance in their goalless draw at Bristol City.

More than 2,500 travelling fans behind the goal yelled for spot-kicks, first when Zak Vyner blocked a 77th-minute shot from substitute Josh Maja and then when Kal Naismith slid in with a goal-saving challenge on Maja in stoppage time.

Both sides hit the woodwork and had other chances to take all three points from an entertaining clash, which saw City dominate the first half and Albion storm back after the interval.

Corberan said: “With the tackle at the end, it is tough for a referee because he has only a second to decide whether the first contact was with the ball or the player.

“I thought the earlier situation was a more clear penalty. The ball was cut back to Maja for the finish and the only way the defender could block it was by using a hand.

“Unfortunately, we have to assess Maja because he was injured by the tackle. He is an excellent striker with a work ethic and maturity unusual for a player of his age.

“I had to make three or four points during half-time, which together with the changes we made, especially the performance of Maja when he went on, made us play better.

“The most positive thing for us was the performance of the team in the second half.

“It took us 45 minutes to adapt to the needs of the game and to understand which passes would avoid their press and which would put us in the attacking half.

“We also needed to address some competitive detail, which would allow us to dominate the game as we did in the second half.”

Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson watched the game on crutches because of a back problem and assistant Curtis Fleming conducted the post-match press conference.

He said: “Nigel’s back has become bad over the last couple of weeks and he might require surgery.

“It was an archetypal Championship game. We played really well in the first half and created some great situations.

“What we lacked perhaps was a bit of quality in our decision-making and that clinical edge you need to show in such a competitive league.

“Albion were always going to come into it in the second half, but again we had opportunities and their keeper has made a great save from Harry Cornick.

“When you are on top you really have to punish teams in the Championship and we didn’t do that today.

“At times the players had to put bodies on the line, which shows their commitment and there is no reason why we shouldn’t aim high this season.

“We are better than we were last season and why not aim for the play-offs. In recent seasons there has always been a club finish in the top six who were not expected to be.

“We believe in what we are doing and there is a real togetherness about the squad, which takes time to develop.

“Are we the finished article yet? No, I don’t think so. But we know we are going in the right direction.

“You can’t coach what Kal Naismith did at the end. He was prepared to make that challenge in front of 20,000 people and that is an example of the team spirit we have built.”

Pep Guardiola praised the impact of Jeremy Doku after the summer signing from Rennes scored his first Manchester City goal to help the champions recover to beat West Ham.

City fought back from a 1-0 deficit at half-time to level within seconds of the restart, Doku cutting inside Vladimir Coufal with excellent footwork and sliding beyond Alphonse Areola for his first goal for City.

Silva and Haaland struck in the final 15 minutes to ensure City maintained their perfect start and stayed top of the Premier League with a 3-1 triumph.

All that had looked less likely when James Ward-Prowse headed in from Coufal’s cross in the first half to give West Ham a deserved lead and put them on course to overtake Guardiola’s side in the league.

The manager said he had not expected such an immediate impact from the 21-year-old Doku, who cost £55million to sign from the Ligue 1 side in the final week of the transfer window, and feared there was a shyness to his performance when he made his debut against Fulham before the international break.

Guardiola watched that game remotely from Barcelona whilst he recovered from back surgery, but since returning to Manchester has been impressed by the progress the Belgium international has made following the 5-1 win against Marco Silva’s side.

“I was in Barcelona, I had the feeling that he played a little bit shy (against Fulham),” he said. “He’d just arrived, had two or three days training, with a team that won the Treble. Maybe he was a little bit in this way.

“But today, no. (I said) use your quality as a winger. One against one, one against two; go. If you don’t have the feeling, pass back to Josko (Gvardiol) and play again.

“Today was from the first minute incredible, aggressive, great determination, arrived many times to the byline. Many, may good things he’s done. Really, really pleased. We thought the quality was there and today he started to prove it.

“When you buy a young player like him for many years (contract), we have to be patient. We cannot expect, I didn’t expect the second game for City to play like he did today. The way he played today, I don’t remember from a long time ago something like that.

“There are processes that he has to learn. Always we are there to help him. At Manchester City, every player has to be (himself). All the players here have a lot of quality.”

City have won all five of their league games this season as they seek an unprecedented fourth consecutive league title.

They were placed under pressure by West Ham for a period in the second half as David Moyes’ side went close through Michail Antonio, Emerson and Kurt Zouma, with Ederson in goal producing a string of fine saves.

“I would say West Ham had more chances in the second half than the first,” said Guardiola. “We created against a team that defends so deep and really, really well. We created a lot of chances in the 90 minutes.

“I’m so proud of the team. It’s great win for us, for the problems (injuries) we have in the squad. It doesn’t matter, the guys always respond well.

“We spoke at half-time, don’t be affected by the result because you’re playing really, really good in the first half. In the second half we were lucky to start and score a goal immediately, we had to be patient then and we had our chances, they had their chances. But really, really good in the way we played.”

Moyes reflected on a game in which his team ran the European champions close but ultimately did not have enough to avoid going down to their first defeat of the season.

“Our other games have had a lot similarities,” he said. “Chelsea missed a penalty kick, then Mick breaks through and scores to make it 2-1. Small margins in football. To be fair, the early season ones have gone for us.

“Today we played against a top team and we’ve done an OK job. Bits l liked, bits of it I didn’t like. But overall I have to say the players did a brilliant job.

“We tried to make it difficult, we always do against City. I think you have to be really clinical and also really clinical defensively as well. You can’t afford to make many mistakes.

“I thought the first goal came at a bad time. I thought their second goal was a mistake and we should have dealt with that much better. It changed the game really at that point.”