Manchester United has closed the gap on Premier League leaders Manchester City to five points, courtesy of a thrilling 4-2 victory over Watford at Vicarage Road on Tuesday.
An unlikely brace from Ashley Young against one of his former clubs put United in control of the contest in the first half and Anthony Martial then added a third soon after to send the clinical visitors into the break with a commanding lead.
Watford refused to lie down, though, and threatened a remarkable comeback in the final 15 minutes when Troy Deeney and Abdoulaye Doucoure pulled goals back for Marco Silva’s side.
However, Jesse Lingard quickly responded to kill the Watford fightback with a fine solo effort four minutes from time, sealing a third consecutive league win for United which sees them put the pressure on City, who play Southampton on Wednesday.
The opener came from United’s first attack of any note as Romelu Lukaku and Jesse Lingard combined to set up Young, who sent a crisp early strike flashing past Heurelho Gomes from the edge of the box.
The wing-back was responsible for the shot which forced the own goal during Saturday’s win over Brighton & Hove Albion, but there was no doubt that he would keep this one and, having waited 19 months for a goal, he made it two in the space of six minutes against his former club.
Young’s second was the pick of the bunch too as the England international curled a stunning free kick into the top corner past a helpless Gomes, despite the ball nestling in on the goalkeeper’s side.
Watford would have been wondering quite how they were two goals down having put in an encouraging performance up to that stage, and their bewilderment was only enhanced as United all but put the game to bed shortly after the half-hour mark.
This time it was Martial who stroked his finish past Gomes from the edge of the box after being played through by Lukaku, with the Frenchman notching his eighth goal of the campaign to already draw level with his tally from the entire 2016-17 season.
It capped a clinical 13-minute period for United during which they scored with every meaningful attack, and it wasn’t until the final minute of the first half that Gomes actually made his first save of the contest.
It turned out to be a stunning double-save from the Brazilian too, as he parried Lukaku’s low strike from the edge of the box before recovering in time to miraculously push Lingard’s follow-up effort over the crossbar.
The hosts returned for the second half knowing that it would take a memorable comeback to salvage anything from the match, but it was United who came closest to the game’s next goal in the opening stages when Lukaku sent a tame effort wide of the far post with his weaker right foot.
Lukaku only had to wait a matter of seconds for an opportunity to redeem himself and this time he was more assured as he drove into a shooting position, only to then drag his effort narrowly wide of the far post.
It looked as though those misses could prove costly when Watford pulled their first goal back just a minute later, with Marcos Rojo – making his first league appearance since April – brought Andre Carrillo to ground with a rash challenge inside the area.
Substitute Troy Deeney made no mistake with his spot kick as he sent De Gea the wrong way, and that glimmer of hope soon became a tidal wave of belief when the Hornets reduced the deficit to one just seven minutes later.
Once again Carrillo was the architect as he picked out Doucoure with his cross into the box, and the midfielder produced a well-controlled half-volley with the outside of his boot for his fifth goal of the season.
The prospect of a memorable fightback vanished as quickly as it had appeared, though, with Lingard restoring United’s two-goal advantage just two minutes later with a stunning solo effort that saw him run from inside his own half before firing a low strike past Gomes.
Trending
- Gbenga Daniel’s son: KFC denied me entry due to my disability
- Edo 2024: Accord Party affirms Iyere as governorship candidate
- EKEDC: In-fighting continues as Board, Chairman again issue contrary directives
- Woman arraigned for allegedly obtaining money by falsehood
- Lagos picks MoneyMaster as payment partner for ‘Ounje Eko’
- FG to arraign Binance, two others for alleged tax evasion
- Six Labour Party State Assembly members defect to PDP in Enugu
- Primate Ayodele knocks ex-Minister for encouraging negotiation with terrorists