Manchester United defeats Aston Villa 2-1 thanks to a late goal from Scott McTominay in the Premier League

Scott McTominay’s late strike against Aston Villa on Sunday secured a crucial 2-1 victory, preserving Manchester United’s chances of placing among the top four teams in the Premier League.

For Erik ten Hag’s team to have any chance of making it into the Champions League the next season, they had to win at Villa Park.

Rasmus Hojlund gave United an early lead, while Douglas Luiz tied the score in the second half.

That prepared the ground for McTominay, who came off the bench with four minutes remaining, to score United’s second late victory against Villa this season.

After winning four straight games across all categories, United is still in sixth position, but they are now just five points behind Villa in fifth place and six behind Tottenham in fourth.

“This is a huge victory for us. The goal for today was for us to become closer. Ten Hag said, “I liked the way we did it.”

We had to battle back at 1-1, and we are incredibly grateful for that. It was like a tennis match, so transparent. It might have gone any way, but we discovered that character and mindset prevailed.

“Scott is excellent. These days, a lot of players look up to him. He is always prepared to step up and change things.

“We were playing well against the mighty Manchester United, but we couldn’t score some clear chances,” Villa manager Unai Emery said.

“We find the outcome hard to accept, but that’s football.” We deserved more since we performed as we had intended.

Even though United still has a long way to go before finishing in the top four, their tenacious success in the West Midlands has at least given them a chance.

Importantly, after struggling for much of the season, they are now thriving in attack.

Following his Boxing Day victory against Villa, Hojlund has scored six goals in his last seven games.

The 21-year-old is now the second youngest player to score in five straight Premier League games after Nicolas Anelka of Arsenal did it in 1998. Prior to this, the youngster had not scored in any of his first 14 outings in the league.

After joining from Atalanta, Hojlund has already scored 11 goals in 29 games across all competitions in his rookie year. His most recent goal came in the 17th minute.

Harry Maguire headed down Bruno Fernandes’ corner, and Hojlund, who was just a hair offside, calmly tapped past Emiliano Martinez, the Villa goalkeeper, from six yards.

Impact of McTominay

Villa came back strongly as Andre Onana made a great save to save John McGinn’s thunderous drive.

Ollie Watkins ran onto McGinn’s ball and missed a great chance to equalize, shooting straight at Onana.

Luke Shaw was replaced by Victor Lindelof at left-back for United during the half, and Villa targeted the Swede right on since he was out of position.

With a quick save to deny Watkins’ close-range attempt after a low cross from Matty Cash, Onana preserved United’s lead.

Leon Bailey’s ball split the United defenders, setting up a glorious chance for Villa to equalize, but Jacob Ramsey’s careless play let it slip away.

Alejandro Garnacho cutback was met with a wayward shot by Fernandes, who ought to have done better.

It turned out to be a critical error as Villa duly equalized in the 67th minute.

After United mishandled a corner, Raphael Varane could only scuff the ball in the direction of Bailey after Onana stopped a close-range flick by Clement Lenglet.

After the Villa striker found Luiz with a superb ball, the Brazilian scored from five yards out and celebrated flamboyantly in front of Onana.

Martinez made a fantastic stop at full stretch as Garnacho almost gave United the lead again with a brilliant run and strike.

When Onana stopped Luiz’s aggressive celebration, the midfielder’s hampered attempt was partially retaliated against.

In the 86th minute, McTominay went to the top of the pitch to meet Diogo Dalot’s cross with a thundering header that whizzed past Martinez, giving United three invaluable points.