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Manchester United went three points clear at the top of the 2020-21 Premier League with a 1-0 win over Burnley at Turf Moor on Tuesday night.
In a hard-fought game, Paul Pogba showed sublime technique with a volley, which took a slight yet telling deflection off Matt Lowton to beat Nick Pope for the only goal of the game.
Manchester United were definitely the better team on the night and fully merited the three points. The win sent them top of the Premier League, three points clear of defending champions Liverpool, where they travel to this weekend..
On that note, here are five major talking points from this game.
#1 Manchester United start slow again
Once again, Manchester United weren't really at their best in the opening exchanges of an away league game. They were sloppy in possession and conceded a few too many free-kicks.
In fact, straight after kick-off, Robbie Brady had the game's first shot, just 14 seconds after the opening whistle. Manchester United survived the scare, as Burnley failed to conjure any clear-cut openings in the opening minutes.
The visitors sparked to life at around the half-hour mark and didn't look back from there. They dominated the ball, moved it around at a decent pace and created decent chances as well to go three points clear at the top.
#2 More VAR drama
Robbie Brady could have been sent off in the first half, as the VAR official deemed his challenge on Edinson Cavani to be a denial of a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
However, Brady got away when it was ruled that Luke Shaw had fouled Johann Berg Gudmundsson in the build-up.
In truth, Shaw's challenge was not the worst, but he followed through high on Gudmundsson after initially getting the ball anyway.
A few minutes later, Manchester United also had a goal ruled out after Harry Maguire planted a superb header in at the back-post. However, the Manchester United captain was ruled to be jumping on the back of Erik Pieters, and Burnley were awarded a free-kick.
There was also a minor check late in the game for a Maguire handball that could have given Burnley a penalty. However, that was deemed not to be a clear and obvious error by the officials.
#3 Paul Pogba steps up with a masterclass
On his day, Manchester United's Paul Pogba is as close to unplayable as a midfielder can be. This was one of those days. He was imperious in everything he did while in possession and meticulous in what he did off the ball.
His goal itself was a thing of beauty, as he displayed exemplary technique to strike the ball dropping from a height with force. He did get slightly fortunate with the deflection off Lowton, but he deserved that luck.
Pogba was outstanding in picking passes and also stopped Ashley Westwood from bringing the Burnley wingers into play. Pogba's presence in midfield was also assisted by Nemanja Matic, who had an outstanding game.
The Burnley game-plan didn't change from the usual, so Matic was important for winning the second balls, which didn't allow Chris Wood and Ashley Barnes to be as effective.
Solskjaer now has a big question on his hands - will Pogba start at Anfield on Sunday? It is likely that Solskjaer may revert to his tried and tested big-game midfield of Fred and Scott McTominay for that one.
#4 Harry Maguire and Eric Bailly impress as a partnership
In Victor Lindelof's absence, Eric Bailly played alongside Harry Maguire at the heart of the Manchester United defence. The duo were rock-solid and key contributors in the table-topping victory.
As already mentioned, Maguire had what looked like a perfectly good goal ruled out. But what was stellar about the Manchester United captain was the way he never got fazed by having to battle with either Wood or Barnes.
Both Maguire and Bailly were commanding in the air, and that blunted the direct game that Burnley were playing. Bailly also made a huge block late in the game, when he got in the way of a goal-bound Matej Vydra shot.
Vydra also had a couple of other great opportunities to test David de Gea, but ballooned those shots way over the bar.
#5 Manchester United go top of the league
For the first time since 2013, Manchester United are atop the Premier League table post Christmas. Who is to say that they can't go all the way?
They have been superb since the 6-1 drubbing by Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford and recently have shown the knack for grinding out results.
With more than half the season left to play, there is little doubt that there are more twists and turns coming before May, but there is also little doubt that Manchester United could be a massive player in the title race.
If they win at Anfield on Sunday, Manchester United will go six points clear of Liverpool, which will be a massive boost for them heading into the second half of the season.
In this crazy season, the title race could get as exciting as it ever has, with just seven points separating the current Premier League's top seven.
