Manchester United 3 Aston Villa 1

After a cagey first half, United took a deserved lead early in the second, through Casemiro’s seventh goal of the season, before the visitors equalised through Ross Barkley.

However, Matheus Cunha put United back in front inside the final 20 minutes, after being teed up by Bruno Fernandes, whose two assists on the afternoon took his tally to 16 for the season; a best-ever figure recorded by a United player in a Premier League campaign, still with eight games to play.

Benjamin Sesko came off the bench to make sure of the victory, keeping the Reds in the third and in a promising position to secure UEFA Champions League football next season. Villa remain a place further back in fourth, now three points adrift of United.

Diogo Dalot and Amad made up a refreshed right-flank in our XI, as the two changes made by Carrick from our defeat at Newcastle United last time out, as Noussair Mazraoui and Sesko each took a place on the bench.

There had been an 11-day gap since our trip to Tyneside, and Old Trafford roared for the welcome return of the Reds at kick-off; it had been just two weeks since United were last in M16, but that extended period without a game gave the sense that the wait for a contest on home soil had gone on much longer.

It was a quiet opening period, one where the visitors initially looked better for having been in action much more recently than the Reds, after a winning trip to Lille in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday. Despite that, there was still little in the way of clear opportunities early on, with Leny Yoro doing well to head clear under pressure from Amadou Onana, as he flung himself at a Morgan Rogers cross in from the right.

More impressive defending, this time from Harry Maguire, kept Ollie Watkins at bay, with the England defender having perfectly tracked his compatriot’s run down the left flank. United began to find more rhythm ourselves, with Cunha beating Lamare Bogarde down the left and delivering dangerously into the middle, with Amad unable to meet it under pressure - to an excessive degree, Reds behind the goal might have suggested - from Tyrone Mings.

It was the first in a series of corners over the ensuing minutes for Carrick’s side, another coming at the midpoint of the half after Bogarde was forced to put behind Dalot’s whipped cross from the right. After failing to produce a shot on goal from the previous two corners, and only a blocked Fernandes shot to show for our opening 20 minutes’ work, it was almost a case of third time’s a charm for United when Emiliano Martinez was forced into action for the first time.

Maguire had nodded Fernandes’s delivery back into the six-yard area, and while replays suggested John McGinn may have been holding back Casemiro, his header found Amad to head one goalwards himself, but Villa’s Argentina keeper was at full stretch to palm his effort away. That looked to be the culmination of United’s first wave of pressure, and was certainly the standout moment of a tense opening 35 minutes.

However, United turned up the intensity again as half-time approached. Fernandes showed marvellous feet to get half a yard of space from Onana and play infield to Casemiro, breaking into the box, only to see his low strike well-blocked by Ezri Konsa. The Reds nearly went one better in the next minute when Fernandes picked out Dalot’s run in-behind his fellow full-back Lucas Digne, bringing it down brilliantly in front of goal but firing over on his left foot.

After Luke Shaw had defended well against McGinn at the right byline, there was time for one more Fernandes effort before by the break - aided by a superb recovery challenge from Leny Yoro on Watkins at the other end, teeing up Amad to counter - but the skipper curled wide of the mark from the edge of the area, meaning it remained goalless at the halfway stage.

United brought the energy after the restart, starting well as a neat move between Fernandes and Shaw saw the latter’s cross cleared, before Bryan Mbeumo played in Amad to dart into the area, but he sliced a right-footed shot wide of the near post from a promising position.

The pressure kept growing as Cunha chested down and volleyed into the ground, and wide, before Fernandes countered and teed up Mbeumo, with Martinez outstretched again to tip the shot wide and behind from a corner. This time, United made their set-piece pay, and deservedly so after their start to the second half. Fernandes curled to the near post for Casemiro to glance a delightful header across goal, beating Martinez and finding the net via the inside of the right-hand post.

The visitors responded well, however, and but for a looping Dalot header which threatened to catch out Martinez, Villa appeared to be taking the upper hand, and were aided by the introduction of attacking pair Leon Bailey and Tammy Abraham from the bench, on the hour-mark. Minutes later, Onana was found at the back post, doing well to chop inside after initially losing his footing under pressure, but his shot was well tipped over by Senne Lammens; his first meaningful intervention all afternoon.

However, the goalkeeper could do nothing about Villa’s next attack, resulting in an equalising goal on 64 minutes. Digne’s low cross from the left was inadvertently diverted by Shaw into the path of Barkley at the back post, who levelled with a fine first-time effort low into the left-hand corner. The strike was subject to a check from the  VAR, after a question mark over whether Onana, in an offside position, had contravened Lammens’s line of sight from Barkley's shot, but the goal was allowed to stand.

Villa looked resurgent and hearts were in mouths when the ball fell at Abraham’s feet in front of goal minutes later; fortunately, Dalot was perfectly placed to take the ball off his toes. They strode forward again when Yoro intercepted a pass down the right and United countered, and with opposition boss already frustrated at that point at the breakdown of his side’s attack, he was livid by the end of it, as United went up the other end and got the goal to put us back in front.

Casemiro had intercepted play and let Fernandes take over deep on the left channel, and he slipped a delicious pass in behind for Cunha who, with the beating of Konsa, opened up his body and curled into the far corner, in front of a rapturous Stretford End.

Sesko was ushered on soon afterwards, and within five minutes of his introduction, he got what has, of late, become his customary goal. After a Cunha cross was cut out and fortuitously deflected back into the path of our no.30, he swivelled on the ball and shot first-time, finding the net with the help of a deflection - taking him into double figures for goals, including nine in the Premier League, in his debut season.

He should have played a part in a fourth United goal with five minutes to play when he latched onto another Fernandes pass in behind. Seeing Amad at the far post, he was perhaps caught in two minds but couldn’t find his intended target regardless.

It proved no matter, even as Villa spurned a glorious opportunity of their own, for Douglas Luiz, in the dying seconds of eight added minutes, as United secured a vital three points in our hunt for Champions League qualification.

MATCH DETAILS

United: Lammens; Dalot, Yoro, Maguire, Shaw; Casemiro (Ugarte 90+1), Mainoo; Amad, Fernandes (c). Cunha; Mbeumo. (Sesko 76)

Subs not used: Bayindir, Heaven, Malacia, Mazraoui, T. Fletcher, Mount, Zirkzee.

Goals: Casemiro 53, Cunha 71, Sesko 81.

Booked: Yoro 74, Maguire 90+6.

Villa: Martinez; Bogarde, Konsa, Mings, Digne (Maatsen 82); Barkley (Luiz 82), McGinn (c) (Bailey 61), Onana; Rogers, Buendia; Watkins (Abraham 61).

Subs not used: Bizot, Garcia, Lindelof, Torres, Elliott.

Goals: Barkley 64.

Booked: Watkins 42, Buendia 69.