Rasmus Hojlund believed he had scored his inaugural goal for Manchester United during his full debut against Brighton, only to have it harshly disallowed by VAR.
Hojlund, aged 20, made a £72 million move to United from Atalanta earlier in the summer but had to wait for his first appearance due to an injury upon his arrival.
He eventually made his debut against Arsenal before the international break, entering as a substitute in United’s 3-1 loss at the Emirates.
Hojlund was granted his first full start on Saturday for the match against Brighton at Old Trafford.
However, the first half didn’t go as planned for Erik ten Hag’s team, as they found themselves trailing when former United striker Danny Welbeck completed a well-orchestrated move approximately 20 minutes into the game.
United thought they had found an equaliser five minutes before the break when the impressive Marcus Rashford beat his man and reached the byline, before cutting the ball back for Hojlund to score from close range.
The Denmark international wheeled away in celebration before pumping his fists in the direction of the home fans. But his celebrations were then cut short by a VAR review.
Replays showed that the ball had just gone out of play before Rashford cut it back to the striker, with referee Jarred Gillett ruling the goal out to the delight of the visiting Brighton supporters.
Hojlund had a shout for a penalty turned down later in the half as the Seagulls held on to take the lead into the interval.