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Speaking on Match of the Day 2 (as quoted by The Manchester Evening News), Alan Shearer has insisted Manchester United will simply have to "accept" inconsistent performances and results this season.

What did he say?

The Red Devils pulled off a comfortable 3-1 victory over Brighton on Sunday afternoon, with the win pushing them into seventh in the Premier League table and nine points off fourth-placed Manchester City.

And, after seeing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men produce one of their better attacking displays of the campaign - they registered 11 shots on target - Shearer revealed their inconsistency is to be expected what with their young squad.

He said: "I thought they were brilliant today. In terms of when they got the ball they are going for the kill, we’re going to hit you right through the middle. Although I thought Brighton played right into their hands at times, they exploited it perfectly. When they won the ball first, they got it forward.

"You have to accept this because of how young they are. I felt it was slightly unfair to put the burden on those (young players) as well with those being so inexperienced and young. That might change in January. You will get performances like last weekend (at Bournemouth) but you also get ones like today. I thought they were excellent."

Rollercoaster

What a journey United have experienced so far. After getting their season off with a bang with a 4-0 thrashing of rivals Chelsea, the Red Devils fell into a miserable run of form that saw them hover in the bottom half of the table. But since their 1-1 draw with Liverpool, Solskjaer's side have pulled off five wins in six games across different competitions, and appear to be finding their groove again with their performances.

As Shearer quite rightly points out, when you have a young squad who have been thrust into the spotlight with huge responsibilities on their shoulders, it is likely to cause some teething problems. But in the long-run, it will no doubt be of major benefit to them to have come through such a period, and the Red Devils are beginning to see the rewards of taking such a process.