Manchester United’s next five fixtures compared to Aston Villa, Liverpool and Chelsea

Manchester United returned to winning ways in the Premier League , as they outclassed Aston Villa 3-1 at Old Trafford on Sunday .

United created some decent scoring opportunities in the opening half, but lack of finishing let them down.

The Red Devils broke the deadlock soon after the break, with Casemiro heading home a Bruno Fernandes corner in the 53rd minute.

Villa hit back almost instantly through Ross Barkley, who met Lucas Digne’s low cross with a first-time strike.

But United restored their advantage when Fernandes delivered a superb through ball to send Matheus Cunha racing and the Brazilian hit the target with a precise low strike.

Benjamin Sesko then came off the bench to complete the scoring, as Michael Carrick’s men took a giant step towards Champions League qualification.

United are currently third in the league table , with three points above Villa and five above Liverpool.

Chelsea, who lost 1-0 to Newcastle United on Saturday, are six points behind in sixth place.

Below we take a look at United’s next five fixtures compared to their rivals for Champions League qualification.

Three of the Red Devils’ next five games are at Old Trafford, with Leeds United, Brentford and Liverpool all scheduled to visit Manchester. The two away fixtures are at Bournemouth and Chelsea .

Bournemouth (A) – March 20, 8pm kick-off

Leeds (H) – April 13, 8pm kick-off

Chelsea (A) – April 18, 8pm kick-off

Brentford (H) – April 27, 8pm kick-off

Liverpool (H) – May 2, TBC kick-off

Villa’s run of games looks kind on paper, but confidence in their camp will likely be low following their recent disappointing results. Unai Emery’s men face three home fixtures against West Ham United, Sunderland and Tottenham Hotspur.

West Ham (H) – March 22, 2.15pm kick-off

Nottingham Forest (A) – April 11, 3pm kick-off

Sunderland (H) – April 18, 3pm kick-off

Fulham (A) – April 25, 12.30pm kick-off

Tottenham (H), May 2, TBC kick-off

Liverpool face difficult-looking trips to Brighton & Hove Albion and Everton, but they should pick up maximum points from the home games against Fulham and Crystal Palace. A blockbuster clash with United is scheduled in May, and what happens there is anybody’s guess.

Brighton (A) – March 21, 12.30pm kick-off

Fulham (H) – April 11, 5.30pm kick-off

Everton (A) – April 19, 2pm kick-off

Crystal Palace (H) – April 25, 3pm kick-off

Man United (A) – May 2, TBC kick-off

Chelsea face David Moyes’ Everton at the weekend , before two home clashes with Manchester City and Manchester United . Brighton and Nottingham Forest round off the Blues’ next five fixtures.

Everton (A) – March 21, 5.30pm kick-off

Man City (H) – April 12, 4.30pm kick-off

Man United (H) – April 18, 8pm kick-off

Brighton (A) – April 26, 4.30pm kick-off

Nottingham Forest (H) – May 2, 3pm kick-off