Manchester United did it the hard way once again on Sunday night when they edged past Brighton 2-1 at Old Trafford.

Having fallen behind to an early Danny Welbeck goal, the Red Devils came roaring back after the break to snatch all three points late on. 

United have now secured 25 points from losing positions in the Premier League this season - the most in the top-flight.

Marcus Rashford netted the equaliser, before Mason Greenwood headed home the decisive goal with seven minutes left.

Greenwood also hit the post during the game, and had an all-round positive evening.

He has struggled for goals this term, netting just two in the league. However, there were certainly some promising signs of returning to form in his latest outing.

GIVEMESPORT's Sam Brookes assesses whether Greenwood is ready to take the next step in his career...

The stat that is comparable to Son

Whilst some may question Greenwood's consistency, the same cannot be said for Tottenham's Son Heung-min.

The winger has been in scintillating form this year, recording 22 goal involvements in the league.

Yet Greenwood does match up well against Son with regards to one attribute - dribbles.

As per WhoScored, Greenwood has completed 28 successful dribbles in England's top division in 2020/21. Meanwhile, Son has made 29 successful dribbles, but has spent 1020 minutes longer on the pitch than the United man to reach this number.

How does Greenwood compare to United's other teenage sensations?

Unfortunately for Greenwood, he does not stack up so well against Son when it comes to finding the net this season - the South Korean forward has 13 league goals to his name.

However, a fairer comparison is to see how Greenwood is doing compared to other United teenage prodigies when they were his age.

Greenwood has now scored 12 Premier League goals as a teenager - Wayne Rooney (15) and Marcus Rashford (13) are the only United players to have scored more before their 20th birthdays. Given that he does not turn 20 until October, Greenwood still has plenty of time to beat the records of his predecessors.

Rooney and Rashford went to on to establish themselves in their respective positions, and have flourished in the first-team. That is now the task that faces Greenwood.

Can Greenwood be United's first-choice striker next season?

United have been linked with Erling Haaland in recent weeks, and it is easy to see why. The Borussia Dortmund attacker has scored 21 goals in 22 Bundesliga games this season.

Greenwood has not been able to produce those numbers this year, but his display on Sunday highlighted his obvious potential.

He has largely operated from the right wing this season, which may explain why his goal tally has dried up. 

It was only last year, though, that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer described him as an "exceptional finisher."

Coming from a former striker himself, that is high praise for Greenwood, and it suggests that his future lies in a central area.

Of course, there is the temptation to throw money at Haaland and then bank on him to hit the ground running in England.

But maybe United should take a different approach, especially with Haaland priced at £128m, which is said to be a considerably greater sum than United's current transfer budget. 

Maybe it is time for Solskjaer to give Greenwood an extended run as the team's central striker between now and the end of the season, because he might just have a superstar of the future under his nose already.