Bruno Fernandes brilliance helps Man Utd past top-four rivals Aston Villa - 6 talking points

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Manchester United's push for a Champions League spot cranked up a notch as they beat Aston Villa 3-1 at Old Trafford.

Casemiro gave Michael Carrick 's men the lead with a brilliant header from Bruno Fernandes ' corner. Ross Barkley then marked his long-awaited return to the Villa starting line-up with a brilliant equaliser.

But Villa weren't level for long as Matheus Cunha scored against Villa for the fourth game in succession. Subsitute Benjamin Sesko made sure of the points late on with a deflected finish.

The win sees United build a three-point lead over Villa ahead of next Friday's clash with Bournemouth .

Here are all of the talking points from Old Trafford:

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England striker Ollie Watkins has not enjoyed the best season for Villa this term. Heading into the clash at Old Trafford, he had netted nine times - eight of those coming in the Premier League .

It is certainly a far cry from the electric form that he has shown over recent campaigns. And he had another quiet afternoon against United.

His only meaningful contribution was a silly booking he picked up for kicking the ball away. Villa boss and England's Thomas Tuchel will be hoping for more ahead of the World Cup.

And while Watkins has been enduring a tricky season in front of goal, the same cannot be said of Brazilian midfielder Casemiro. Having announced his exit from the club at the end of the season, he appears to have hit even higher levels.

He was at it again against Villa as he reached Fernandes' corner and nodded beyond the reach of Emi Martinez. It represented Casemiro's seventh Premier League goal of the campaign.

You'd have to wonder whether the Red Devils would have wanted him to stick around after all.

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While Casemiro will understandably take the acclaim for his goalscoring form, one man who also needs praising is captain Fernandes. The Portuguese playmaker has regularly been the provider for his teammate, with a series of outstanding deliveries.

And he predictably got it spot-on again vs Villa. It saw Fernandes chalk up his 15th Premier League assist of the season.

In providing Cunha with the second, he broke the record set by David Beckham in the 1999/2000.

Just 11 minutes after the Red Devils had hit the front, they were pegged back again after a sumptuous, curling finish from Barkley. The midfielder was afforded acres of room to equalise on what what his first Premier League start of the season.

There was some slight controversy surrounding the goal, with United appealing for handball, while VAR checked for offside, with it looking as though the ball had brushed Amadou Onana on its way into the net. But it was eventually given.

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Having scored in each of his last three games against Aston Villa, Cunha will have been confident of doing so yet again. And that's exactly what he did.

Fernandes was once again at the heart of things as he played an inch-perfect pass in behind the Villa backline. Cunha latched onto it and finished coolly beyond Martinez to give his side the lead once again.

Sesko is developing a bit of a reputation as somewhat of a super sub. The Slovenian forward now has nine Premier League goals to his name this term, the vast majority of them coming off the bench.

Having been introduced against Villa, he was alive to spin on the ball and fire home, albeit with the help of a deflection.

And while Sesko might not be totally satisfied with his role as a substitute, so long as the goals keep coming, not many will care.

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