Ole Gunnar Solskjaer joked it was a good job Jose Mourinho wasn't at the Amex Stadium after his Manchester United side profited from some wayward Brighton finishing.
The Seagulls struck the woodwork on no fewer than five occasions as they lost 3-2 to the Red Devils in dramatic fashion.
Solly March thought he had rescued a point in the fifth minute of added time, only for United to be awarded a penalty after the full-time whistle by VAR.
Neal Maupay, who had earlier scored from the spot himself, was adjudged to have handled the ball, and Bruno Fernandes dispatched confidently from 12 yards.
Mourinho ordered the goals to be replaced before Tottenham's win over Macedonian side Shkendija in the Europa League on Thursday after his goalkeepers noticed they were too small in the warm-up.
And the irony was not lost on Solskjaer after Brighton's trouble with the woodwork.
He told BT Sport: "We got away with one. Maybe one point we deserved, we didn't deserve more. But the character deserved more.
"Last season we had too many draws, so that is a big plus for us. You have to be happy Jose is not here to measure the goal posts.
"They are a difficult team to play against. We don't have the legs and sharpness but we will get there. We have plenty of work ahead."
Brighton boss Graham Potter cursed his side's luck after the defeat, claiming his side were 'dominant' against United.
"The performance level was amazing from us, I'm so proud of the players," he told the BBC. "It's a sore one, to say the least. Sometimes life isn't fair and it feels like that at the moment.
"All the little things have gone against us but we were really good for 90 minutes and we have to take that forwards. We have developed as a group, as a team, and we will take that setback as positively as we can.
"I don't know what the shot count was but we were dominant. We deserved something from the game to say the least."
