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A brace from Robin Van Persie was enough to claim Manchester United's second-straight away win and propel them into third place in the League.Here are the major talking points from the game.
#1 Clinical Van Persie makes the difference
All the talk before the game was about Ronald Koeman, Louis Van Gaal and their bitter feud. But it was another Dutchman who changed the course of the game. Robin Van Persie was derided for his performances early in the campaign and rightly so, but against the Saints, he showed just why he still is one of the most lethal strikers in Europe.
Both his goals were fantastic finishes, the first a reward for his predatory instinct and the second a testament to his technique and ability inside the box. Not only did he score a brace, the Dutch striker also held the ball up really well and it was his clinical finishing that ensured that his side claimed all three points.
#2 Saints pay for their indecisive finishing
After the game, Ronald Koeman said that the lucky team won. While that was certainly true, the simple fact is that the Saints have now lost three games in a row. And their last two games against Arsenal and United, were games they could have and should have won.
But the difference is that they don't have clinical finishers in their side. For all of Pelle's goals, he still isn't what you call a predator inside the box. Even though he scored, the Italian striker still missed good opportunities, but the difference was Shane Long.
Van Persie had two chances and he scored two goals, but Long got none and that is the difference between the top sides and Southampton. That is something that Koeman has to work on if he has hopes of finishing in the top four.
#3 Fellaini shows his limitations
Before the start of the season, some fans were claiming that Marouane Fellaini was one of the worst signings that the club have ever made. But after his recent upturn in form, they are claiming that he is just what United need. But the reality is that the answer is somewhere in between.
While it is true that Fellaini is a useful weapon to have in the arsenal, he is someone who really doesn't fit in with the United style of play on a regular basis. Against teams who are big and strong and when you need a physical presence, he is perfect, but against a side like Southampton who like to keep it down and pass the ball, the Belgian was found out.
His passing was slack, and although it only led to the first goal, the truth is that, there might have been a few more that went in as a direct result of his mistakes if it weren't for some profligate finishing from the home side.
#4 Van Gaal shows his ruthless streak
There are managers like Arsene Wenger who will trust their judgement and keep the faith in players even if they aren't doing very well. But then there are those like Van Gaal who take risks with their formations, like he did against Southampton, but are at the same time, not afraid to admit a mistake and changes this around.
The Dutchman's post-match interview clearly showed that. He said that he is the manager of Manchester United, who was brought in to win games and not to make friends. And that is precisely what happened when he took off Paddy McNair in the first half after the youngster got off to a shocking start.
This season, he has already chopped and changed with respect to his formations. And although he hasn't settled down on one formation as yet, that has been down to injuries rather than it being a result of his indecisiveness and that is certainly a good sign for Manchester United.
#5 How long can United keep this going?
Three attempts on goal. That is the least that Manchester United have managed ever since Opta started collating the data 11 years ago. But none of that matters because two goals from Van Persie meant that the Red Devils won five League games in a row for the first time since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson.
It also meant that the visitors climbed into third spot for the first time since last September. Although their performances haven't been great, they are still grinding results and only time will tell how long they can keep this going. But such is the inconsistency of the sides around them that if they keep this up until the end of the month, they might start to open up a gap from them to fourth spot.
