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MANCHESTER UNITED BOLSTERED their bid to qualify for the Champions League with a vital 3-1 win against top-four rivals Aston Villa on Sunday.
Michael Carrick’s side took the lead through Casemiro’s second-half opener at Old Trafford before Ross Barkley hauled Villa level.
United finished strongly, with Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko scoring in the closing stages to seal Carrick’s seventh win in nine games since taking over as interim boss.
Sitting third in the Premier League, United are three points clear of fourth-placed Villa in the race to reach the Champions League via a top-four finish.
United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe this week praised Carrick’s “excellent” work, but stopped short of committing to the former Old Trafford star on a long-term basis.
But Carrick making a strong case to earn the job on a permanent basis after stabilising United following Ruben Amorim’s sacking.
United’s latest victory came after an 11-day break since the first defeat of his reign at Newcastle and Carrick celebrated with a jig of delight on the touchline after Sesko wrapped up the points.
Spluttering Villa have lost their last three league games and have just one win in seven top-flight matches, leaving them three points above fifth-placed Chelsea with eight games left in the battle for European places.
After a lethargic first-half, United finally prised open the Villa defence in the 53rd minute.
Bryan Mbeumo’s stinging strike was palmed away by Emiliano Martinez, earning a corner that brought the opener.
Bruno Fernandes curled a corner to the near post and Casemiro made a perfectly timed run to glance a header past Martinez for his league goal this season.
With Casemiro likely to leave when his contract expires at the end of the season, United fans serenaded the Brazilian midfielder with chants of “one more year”.
United lost focus and surrendered the lead in the 64th minute.
In his first Premier League start for 14 months, Barkley slammed a superb strike past Senne Lammens from 12 yards after United failed to clear the danger. But Cunha netted in the 71st minute to ensure Carrick’s men didn’t pay for their stumble.
Bursting onto Fernandes’ sublime pass into the Villa area, the Brazilian forward slotted a fine finish into the far corner.
It was Fernandes’ 16th Premier League assist this term, moving the United captain past David Beckham’s previous club record of 15 in 1999-2000.
He has 100 assists for United in all competitions since signing from Sporting Lisbon in 2020.
Sesko came off the bench to prove a point to Carrick after being dropped, the Slovenian striker firing home with a deflected effort in the 81st minute.
Written by Gavin Cooney and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.
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