The Argentine stepped up to emphatically slam home a 99th-minute spot-kick past David de Gea in Thursday’s pulsating clash at the Amex Stadium after Luke Shaw had been rightly penalised for a clear handball following a VAR review.
That late, late goal saw Brighton get revenge for their heartbreaking FA Cup semi-final penalty shootout defeat by the same opponents at Wembley less than a fortnight ago.
The Seagulls now move up to sixth place in the Premier League table, leapfrogging both Aston Villa and Tottenham in one foul swoop having also smashed sorry Wolves for six with a weakened side last weekend.
It is the first time that Brighton, who also thumped the Red Devils 4-0 on this ground 12 months ago and remain the only away team to have won a top-flight game at Old Trafford so far this season, have ever produced three successive league wins over United and comes as a major boost for their hopes of European qualification for next season.
Roberto De Zerbi’s men now sit four points behind resurgent Liverpool, winners of five straight, with two games in hand, with the gap to United in fourth trimmed to eight points with Brighton having played one match less.
They have also already eclipsed their highest top-flight points total ever with six fixtures still to come this term.
United missed the chance to go back above Newcastle and into third spot, though they remain on course for a return to the Champions League next season as things stand with a four-point lead over Liverpool and a game in hand over their fiercest rivals.
Erik ten Hag will nevertheless demand an instant response from his side when they travel to face a struggling West Ham team that have lost three games in a row at the London Stadium on Sunday night.
Brighton, meanwhile, will be fizzing with confidence as they return to the Amex on Bank Holiday Monday for a date with relegation-threatened Everton.
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