Clinical Man United move clear in third place

MANCHESTER, England:

Third-place Manchester United put some daylight between themselves and chasing Liverpool and Aston Villa with a clinical 2-1 win at home to Brentford in the English Premier League on Monday.

United moved three points above their rivals and took a huge step towards ensuring they will play Champions League football next season for the first time since 2024.

Casemiro, just weeks before he departs the club, sneaked in at the back post to head United into the lead after 11 minutes. It was his 11th headed goal since he joined United in August 2022, a record bettered only by Erling Haaland (18), Ollie Watkins (16) and Chris Wood (13).

Although Brentford were equal to the hosts in an entertaining first half it was United which doubled their lead on the cusp of the break.

19TH ASSIST

Benjamin Sesko took a simple pass from Bruno Fernandes to finish off a swift counterattack and assure the talismanic midfielder of his 19th assist of the season, a league high, and only one away from equalling the Premier League record.

"Me and Bruno Fernandes work a lot on the training pitch and it is paying off," Sesko said. "Knowing I have a teammate with this quality is a pleasure and I have to use it."

Both sides had chances in a quieter second half, but Brentford especially were profligate in front of goal.

Mathias Jensen's long-range strike in the 87th minute gave them some hope, but United held on to ensure another disappointing result for Keith Andrews' men.

"Bitterly disappointed," Andrews told the BBC. "Overall our performance was very good. As a collective we went toe to toe with a good side and controlled large parts of the game. They were more clinical than us."

Brentford remained in ninth place, tied on points with Chelsea and Fulham, but they have not won in the league since February.

However, their hopes of clinching European football for the first time remain alive and Andrews was optimistic.

"There is absolute belief in everything we do," Andrews said. "We are not playing safe, I don't want us to be that team. We set up in a brave fashion against a top team tonight and unfortunately we couldn't quite get there'".

-AP