Third-placed Manchester United put some daylight between itself and its chasers Liverpool and Aston Villa with a clinical 2-1 win at home to Brentford in the Premier League on Monday.

United moved three points above its rivals and took a huge step toward ensuring it will play Champions League soccer 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) in that time.

Although Brentford was equal to the host in an entertaining first half, United doubled its lead on the cusp of halftime.

Benjamin Sesko took a simple pass from Bruno Fernandes to finish off a swift counterattack and ensure the talismanic midfielder of his 19th assist of the season, a league high, and only one away from equaling the Premier League record currently held by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.

"Me and Bruno Fernandes work a lot together 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 was particularly profligate in front of goal.

Mathias Jensen's long-range strike in the 87th minute gave it 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 just more clinical than us."

Brentford remains in ninth place, tied on points with Chelsea and Fulham, but it has not won in the league since February.

However, its hopes of clinching European soccer for the first time remain alive and Andrews remains 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."

Midfield stars hailed

United manager Michael Carrick singled out Casemiro and Fernandes for particular praise after the midfield duo inspired the win.

Casemiro, who is set to leave when his contract expires at the end of the season, now has four goals in his last six games, underlining his enduring value to United.

Skipper Fernandes, with his 19th assist of the campaign, illustrates his importance to the side.

Carrick knows the value of his midfield pair, and the United interim boss said: "Casemiro has scored some big goals for us. Bruno and Casemiro have a good relationship.

"We have scored nearly every game, and Bruno is a big part of that. He could have maybe had one more assist and scored himself."

When Carrick took over as caretaker, United was languishing in sixth place, with a Champions League berth far from assured.

But, the former United midfielder has impressively steadied the ship following the turbulent reign of Ruben Amorim.

United now needs just two points from its last four games to seal its place in Europe's elite club competition for the first time since 2023-24.

"It wasn't a given, at certain stages we weren't favorites. Now we are in a good position and want to finish as high in the league as we can," Carrick said.

"I thought the spirit, effort and togetherness of the players was fantastic. It's the time of year when it's a results business, and we needed to take the points.

"Now, we have an important game coming up against Liverpool, and we can look forward to that."

Maguire credits Carrick

United defender Harry Maguire credited Carrick with restoring the team's confidence and getting it back to winning ways.

"We had two tough fixtures with Arsenal and Man City when Michael first came in, and I think everyone was probably looking at them thinking 'oh no'. But, we managed to get the six points," Maguire told Sky Sports after setting up Casemiro for the first goal against Brentford.

"Everyone's believed in it, and we've gathered together. We've got the confidence. We know that we can score goals from anywhere."

United has won nine of its 13 games under Carrick.

"The results speak for themselves — since the manager came in, and the formation has changed, we just seemed to pick up results. I think that in the previous games, when Ruben was here, the games were fifty-fifty, but we always ended up on the back of a defeat," Maguire explained.

"Now, it seems like it's the other way around, where we're a lot better in both boxes. We defend our box a lot better, and we're managing to be clinical at the other end."

Agencies