Manchester United End Watford's Stay atop Premiership

It was fun while it lasted.

Still, not even the most starry-eyed Hornet fan believed Watford would remain in the Premiership title hunt for very long.

Hope remains that this could be a special season, but not that special.

And when Manchester United chooses Vicarage Road to offer a brief glimpse of what they can be if they ever fire on all cylinders for an entire match, the gulf between the big clubs and all others becomes a chasm.

 

Full marks to Watford for putting up a feisty fight against Jose Mourinho’s Red Devils, but the 1-2 result flattered to deceive.

With the exception of a 15-minute span in the first half, United were rubbish. However, their bad form was enough to keep a relentless opponent at bay, and that one short spell saw the glory they could bring.

 

The Hornets matched United for energy and threat from the start, but the best they could manage was a Troy Deeney header in the 16th minute, but David de Gea was there to save it. 

A quarter-hour later, though, the the Devils snapped into awesome mode. It bore fruit in the 35th minute, when Ashley Young’s cross found Romelu Lukaku, alone, who made it one with his stomach under plenty of complaints from Watford players about a possible handball.

But the referee’s decision to allow the goal was correct:

 

Just three minutes later, Chris Smalling ripped a screamer in a half-volley from close-range to beat 'keeper Ben Foster:

 

Watford hardly had time to realize what just happened.

 

Undaunted, the Hornets kept at it.

United's efforts had dissolved back into a knockabout, with de Gea being all that separated his side from only earning a point on the day.

Ultimately, in the 65th, Watford got on the board through Andre Gray, who sneaked inside the box and fired home to the top corner:

 

The only other incident of note was Nemanja Matić being sent off for a second yellow in the 93rd, but by then, the Red Devils' victory was a foregone conclusion.

The Special One had best sit his troops down and play a loop of that 15-minute patch in the first half for the next few days. They're off to Switzerland -- Bern, to be specific -- to face the Young Boys in a Champions League match on Wed 19 Sep.

Dudes would be well-advised to take heed.