Saturday 21 November 2015 18:39, UK
Manchester United went top of the Premier League - temporarily at least - on Saturday with a 2-1 win at Watford.
It wasn't straight forward for Louis van Gaal's side, though, with Troy Deeney scoring at both ends late on.
The Watford captain's penalty had cancelled out Memphis Depay's opener but he could do nothing but bundle Bastian Schweinsteiger's shot into his own net in injury time.
Here, we round up five talking points from the game...
Late drama at Vicarage Road
Marcos Rojo will be the most relieved man in Manchester this evening, after Schweinsteiger - with the help of Deeney - got him off the hook for a reckless foul on Odion Ighalo, which looked to have cost United two points.
Van Gaal's side had survived several second-half scares and looked on course to hold on for a 1-0 victory over Watford until Rojo - on as a sub for the injured Ander Herrera - hauled Ighalo to the floor in the box with five minutes to play.
Deeney hammered home his third Premier League goal in four games to level the match - but there was another late twist to come when Schweinsteiger latched onto a loose ball at the other end, after Heurelho Gomes had parried Jesse Lingard's shot, and fired in off the Watford skipper.
United are renowned for scoring late goals but, despite leaving Vicarage Road victorious, the Hornets highlighted the danger Van Gaal's men face when they fail to turn their dominance into more than a one-goal advantage.
United's backline finally breached
Deeney's penalty was the first goal United had conceded in 641 minutes in all competitions and denied the visitors a sixth clean sheet in a row. Until Rojo's ill-judged intervention, United had impressively dealt with mid-game changes to personnel and formation to shut out their hosts.
Without an experienced replacement on the bench for Herrera, Van Gaal sent Rojo on to form a back three with Phil Jones and Chris Smalling on 25 minutes, with Daley Blind and Ashley Young - facing his former club - as wing-backs.
Despite the tactical switch, United's defence were largely untroubled throughout the entire first-half. However, after the break, with the visitors failing to retain the ball as well as they had in the opening 45 (United's possession stats dropped from 60.2 per cent in the first half to 52 per cent in the second) the defence came under pressure.
David de Gea twice dealt with Deeney drives drilled straight at him and produced a superb reflex stop to keep out Almen Abdi's effort which seemed bound for the bottom corner. After managing just two shots in the first-half, Watford fired eight - and five on target - in the second. Rojo's foul finally helped the Hornets to level.
Depay delivers his response
Van Gaal told the press on Friday he had expected more from £27.9m summer signing Depay. The former PSV forward hadn't featured in any of United's last four games since being hauled off at half-time during their humbling at Arsenal. He'd also been left out of the Netherlands squad for the latest internationals.
"Now he has to fight back," said Van Gaal. Depay did just that at Vicarage Road.
With Anthony Martial, skipper Wayne Rooney and Marouane Fellaini unavailable, Depay was deployed up front alongside Lingard. Within 11 minutes he had ended his seven-game wait for a goal.
Van Gaal had described Depay as the "greatest talent of his age" in the summer and the technique of the top scorer in Eredivisie last season was spot on when he volleyed Herrera's pinpoint cross into the top corner on Saturday.
Fuelled by the boost of finding the back of the net, Depay went on to claim the man of the match prize. Interestingly, Depay had 67 touches of the ball in his more central attacking role. Rooney has only had more than this in one of his 11 Premier League appearances this season (68 v Arsenal).
Watford's defence shaken up
Best-placed of the promoted teams, Watford went into this game 11th in the Premier League. While the goals of Odion Ighalo (seven in 12) have been key, Watford's impressive start to life back in the top flight has been built on their defensive solidity.
The Hornets had conceded just 12 times. No team outside of the top five had conceded fewer, while only Crystal Palace and Arsenal had breached the Watford defence at Vicarage Road this season.
However, from Allan Nyom's sliced clearance over his own bar four minutes in, the hosts' backline looked unsettled. Depay was afforded space in the box to volley in on 11 minutes but Watford's defenders and goalkeeper Gomes repeatedly miss-kicked when trying to clear their lines, handing possession straight back to Van Gaal's side. Centre-back Miguel Britos lost possession 29 times. In contrast, Chris Smalling did so on just seven occasions.
Watford were again guilty of failing to clear the ball in the latter stages as United poured forward looking for their late winner.
This was the first time Watford have conceded a first-half goal at home in all competitions since January 24 - when they went on to beat Blackpool 7-2 - but with potential relegation rivals Aston Villa, Norwich and Sunderland up next and back-to-back tests against Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham and Man City on the horizon, they must re-find their defensive composure quickly.
United's title credentials
In spite of forced tactical changes, injuries and conceding a late penalty, Manchester United once again found a way to win on Saturday.
The result moved United to the top of the Premier League - temporarily at least - and with Leicester (a), West Ham (h), Bournemouth (a), Norwich (h) and Stoke (a) next up, there's every chance they could still be there come New Year's Day.
Finding a way to win in difficult circumstances is a hallmark of Premier League winners - just recall Chelsea's ability last season to grind out victories in the second half of 2014/15. United are yet to hit their stride but they are keeping the pressure up at the top of the table.
