Cristiano Ronaldo pictured laughing as Manchester United suffer second-half collapse during 4-0 loss to Brighton

Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United were shocked into a humbling defeat against Brighton and Hove Albion in their latest Premier League clash. The stunning loss will see the Red Devils miss out entirely on Champions League football as they have just one game remaining this season.

After 37 games, the Red Devils are lying at the sixth position with 58 points. Tottenham Hotspur are ahead of them by four points after having played two games less. The Spurs are taking on table-toppers Liverpool at the time of writing.

When the Seagulls scored their third goal, United's players could only look at each other in disbelief, while Ronaldo was pictured with a laugh on his face. It didn't help that the third goal came only three minutes ahead of the fourth, which resulted in Brighton earning an absolutely commanding win against the visitors.

The Seagulls took the lead early in the game with a long-range shot from Moises Caicedo. While neither side scored through the rest of the first half, the floodgates opened in the second half, as Brighton scored their second goal in the 49th minute.

Gross added his name on the scoresheet in the 57th minute as he whisked through an inept Manchester United defense and put the ball past David de Gea.

Cristiano Ronaldo could only laugh as his teammates looked stunned beyond belief. The final goal saw a crumbling United fail to hold off a tight chance within the six-yard box where Leandro Trossard was on hand to score with his chest.

The Red Devils were poor in attack and horrible in defense, and Ronaldo's laughter could've meant everything from disbelief to frustration.

---

Cristiano Ronaldo wins Manchester United's April Player of the Month

Cristiano Ronaldo has been awarded the club’s Player of the Month award for April. In their widely disappointing month, the Portuguese star was one of the stand-out performers at United and was duly rewarded for his efforts on the pitch.

In a month that was particularly marred by the passing of the Portugal captain’s newborn son, the Manchester United striker still managed to deliver on the pitch. United have also seen their domestic campaign fall apart and look like missing out on even the Europa League, as they remain embroiled in a wretched run of form.

Cristiano Ronaldo is currently the Red Devils' highest goal scorer this campaign, finding the back of the net 24 times in 37 appearances for a poor United team. It remains to be seen if he will depart in the summer, but the Red Devils can definitely not afford to lose a player of his quality.