Third-placed 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 Premier League on Monday.
United are three points ahead of their rivals and have taken a huge step towards ensuring they can play Champions League football for the first time since 2024 next season.
Casemiro sneaked in at the back post a few weeks before he left the club and headed United ahead after eleven minutes. It was his eleventh goal since joining United in August 2022, a record bettered only by Erling Haaland (18), Ollie Watkins (16) and Chris Wood (13).
Although Brentford drew level with the hosts in an entertaining first half, it was United who doubled their lead just before half-time.
Benjamin Sesko took a simple pass from Bruno Fernandes to finish off a quick counter-attack and secure the talismanic midfielder his 19th assist of the season, a league-high and just one away from equaling the Premier League record.
“Me and Bruno Fernandes work a lot on the training pitch and it is paying off,” Sesko said. “It’s a pleasure to know that I have a teammate with this quality and I have to use him.”
Both teams had chances in a quieter second half, but Brentford in particular were wild in front of goal.
Mathias Jensen’s long-range strike in the 87th minute provided some hope, but United held on to deliver another disappointing result to Keith Andrews’ men.
“Bitterly disappointed,” Andrews told the BBC. «Overall our performance was very good. As a collective we went up against a good side and controlled large parts of the game. They were more clinical than us.»
Brentford remained in ninth place, level with Chelsea and Fulham, but have not won in the league since February.
However, hopes of conquering European football for the first time remain alive and Andrews was optimistic.
“There is absolute belief in everything we do,” Andrews said. «We’re not playing it safe, I don’t want us to be that team. We played bravely tonight against a top team and unfortunately we couldn’t quite get there.»
Published on April 28, 2026
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