Jesse
Lingard's first Manchester United goal inspired his side to a 2-0 win over West
Bromwich Albion on Saturday that left them a point shy of the English Premier
League summit.
United had
ended a 404-minute goal drought against CSKA Moscow mid-week, but they laboured
again until Lingard broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute at Old Trafford.
Juan Mata
added a stoppage-time penalty.
Victory kept
Louis van Gaal's side in fourth place, but they are now just a point below
co-leaders Manchester City and Arsenal, both of whom play on Sunday, and
Leicester City, who won 2-1 at home to Watford.
"Everybody
knows who has played football that the most difficult way to score is against a
very defensive team," Van Gaal told the BBC.
"The
space is only at the wings and we have tried to do that. The only way you can
play against such a defensive, organised team is the way we do it.
"You
need patience. In the second half West Brom are more tired and the chances
come."
Van Gaal
named the same team that had shaded CSKA 1-0 in the Champions League, but they
created only two real chances in the first half, with Mata curling wide and
Anthony Martial stinging Boaz Myhill's palms.
It drew the
familiar chant of 'Attack! Attack! Attack!' from the home fans, but early in
the second half Lingard made the breakthrough, gathering Chris Brunt's clearing
header and brilliantly curling in from outside the box.
Mata stroked
home a penalty in the 91st minute after Gareth McAuley had been sent off for
chopping down the fleeing Martial.
At the King
Power Stadium, Jamie Vardy scored for the ninth league game running as
Leicester sank Watford to continue their fine start to the season under manager
Claudio Ranieri.
A howler
from Heurelho Gomes saw the Watford goalkeeper allow N'Golo Kante's toe-poke to
trickle through his fingers in the 52nd minute.
Gomes then
fouled Vardy inside the box and the England forward netted the ensuing
spot-kick after regular penalty-taker Riyad Mahrez stood aside.
It made
Vardy the first English player to score in nine successive Premier League games
and left him within one game of former United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy's
record.
Troy Deeney
replied from the spot for Watford.
"It's
great for Jamie Vardy to score again," said Ranieri. "I don't know if
it's another record, but he continues in a good moment."
West Ham
United failed to make ground on the leaders after a 1-1 draw at home to
Everton, who levelled through Romelu Lukaku after Manuel Lanzini had put the
hosts ahead with a fine, bending effort on the half-hour.
Lukaku
equalised two minutes before half-time, rounding Adrian from Gerard Deulofeu's
pass and rolling home his seventh goal in seven games against West Ham.
In a further
blow to the hosts, they lost chief creator Dimitri Payet and substitute Enner
Valencia to injury in the second period.
Newcastle
United climbed out of the relegation zone at Bournemouth's expense after a
27th-minute Ayoze Perez strike and a string of saves by goalkeeper Rob Elliot
earned them a smash-and-grab 1-0 win at Dean Court.
Sunderland
remain in the bottom three, four points from safety, after losing 1-0 at home
to Southampton, who prevailed courtesy of Dusan Tadic's 69th-minute penalty.
But Norwich
City pulled away from danger, climbing above struggling champions Chelsea and
Newcastle after Jonny Howson's 70th-minute tap-in gave Alex Neil's men a 1-0
home win over Swansea City.
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