Burnley 0-1 Man Utd: Anthony Martial strike gives Man Utd narrow win

Anthony Martial's second-half goal gave Manchester United a narrow 1-0 victory at Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday.

United got the only goal of the game in the 54th minute, Martial's third in four games, striking in off the bar from 12 yards after good work from Romelu Lukaku.

Burnley had chances to equalise in the second half, hitting the bar from Johann Gudmundsson's free-kick, but their search for a win extends to eight in all competitions.

The result means Man Utd are nine points behind Man City before their late kick-off against Newcastle on Saturday, while Burnley are down to eighth.

As expected, Henrikh Mkhitaryan was left out of the matchday squad as talks for a swap deal with Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez continue, with the Chilean himself missing Arsenal's win over Crystal Palace.

During a first half lacking in opportunities for either side, Ashley Young came closest, nutmegging Gudmundsson near the corner flag before curling just wide of the far post.

United got their breakthrough nine minutes into the second half through Martial, who finished well as he was found in space by Lukaku after fine hold-up play from the Belgian on the right.

Burnley hit the bar from Gudmundsson's dipping free-kick just three minutes after the goal, before the Icelandic midfielder's dangerous ball across the face of goal evaded Ashley Barnes by inches thanks to a fine deflection from Chris Smalling.

Martial should have had a second late on, forcing a fine save out of Pope at his near post after being found in space again in the penalty area, and despite a late Burnley rally, Jose Mourinho's side held on.

United have now earned five straight clean sheets in all competitions as they look to keep up with rivals City in the Premier League title race.

Opta stats

• Man Utd have won back-to-back league games at Turf Moor for the first time since May 1963.
• Man Utd have won five of their last six away Premier League games (D1) after winning just two of the 10 prior to this run (D4 L4).
• Burnley have lost three consecutive Premier League home games for the first time since April 2010.
• Burnley have won one of their last 25 matches against Manchester United in all competitions (D10 L14).

The managers

Sean Dyche: "I think we've more than matched Man Utd in the application of the players, for quality of the play, some really good play from us today, and certainly the tactical format.

"But inevitably you don't come away with what you want, which is a minimum of a point and a maximum of a win."

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Jose Mourinho: "It was very hard. We played against a brave team, a team that plays with strength, that knows how to get points, and that's why they are in a comfortable position.

"We knew it was going to be difficult, especially if you don't score goals to kill the match, so at 1-0 it will always be a game until the last second. I prefer to win 4-0, and to sit on the bench and enjoy the game, but it's good to see the way the team fought for it."

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Man of the match - Phil Jones

With Burnley threatening sporadically at Turf Moor, Phil Jones' positioning was impeccable.

He registered a team-high 13 clearances and five interceptions, and won a an impressive 90 per cent of his aerial duels against Burnley's front men.

Jones has been impressive for United of late, and has contributed heavily to Mourinho's side going five games without conceding in all competitions.

What's next

United now go to Yeovil on Friday night in the FA Cup fourth round, while Burnley are next in action on January 31 at Newcastle in the Premier League.

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