Manchester United moved three points clear at the top of the Premier League after a Paul Pogba goal gave them a 1-0 win over Burnley at Turf Moor on Tuesday.
The victory, in the re-arranged fixture, put United on 36 points from 17 games with rivals Liverpool on 33 points ahead of the clash between the two sides at Anfield on Sunday.
The breakthrough came in the 71st minute when Marcus Rashford floated in a ball from the right which Pogba met with a volley that deflected off Burnley defender Matt Lowton and beat the wrong-footed Nick Pope.
It is the first time United have been top of the league after 17 games since December 2012 and the victory was their seventh in eight games away from Old Trafford.
While United did not create as much as they would have expected against a team in 16th place, it was a determined and aggressive display from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.
“It’s very hard to play here,” said Pogba, who enjoyed another good performance in the centre of midfield.
“They have a style of play, very strong and we knew it would be difficult. We had to keep our heads calm and just focus on ourselves and hope the goal would come and it did come. It was a great performance from everyone, good focus.
“There is still a long way to go and we have big games to go so we have to focus on that.”
United skipper Harry Maguire had an effort ruled out in the first half after referee Kevin Friend ruled he had pushed Erik Pieters as he rose to head in a Luke Shaw cross at the back post.
Burnley applied some late pressure and felt they should have had a penalty when the ball appeared to hit Maguire’s arm. James Tarkowski had a great chance to grab a point for the Clarets but failed to make good contact from a goalscoring position.
United should have wrapped up the win in the final minutes but Anthony Martial, through on goal, was denied by the legs of Pope. – Super Sport.
