Manchester United's stake in climbing the top rungs of the Barclay's Premier League received a major boost over the weekend as the Red Devils, riding high on an Ander Herrera brace and a Wayne Rooney goal, beat a stumbling Aston Villa 3-1 at Old Trafford.Early in the game, it was clear that Villa would be on the defensive. At the other end, the confidence of each man in a red jersey was there for all to see and they did not disappoint. There was no hesitation in going for the kill and no one missed the odd tactics of sideways passing. This one was Man U's all the way.After some aggressive moves by Rooney, Juan Mata and Ashley Young early on in the game, Ander Herrera was the one to find the back of the Villa nets in the 43rd minute, just when Villa thought they had at least saved the first half.In the second half, Villa players again managed to hold strong against the onslaught but Rooney sent in a well-fought cross from Angel Di Maria in the 79th minute and although Christian Benteke did offer some hope in the very next minute, taking the scoreboard to 2-1, Herrera was to have the last say in this one.In stoppage time, a little assistance from Rooney and Mata saw Herrera record a brace and it was all over for Villa. Well, at least the players can be happy with the fact that they put up more fight in the last few minutes of the game than they did throughout!With this emphatic win against Villa, Man U's fifth successive win in the league, it would take a truly tough team or a really rough day to knock them down from where the Red Devils stand right now.After the game, Louis Van Gaal proclaimed that his team would now aim to climb higher up the table. He knows the game against Manchester City could prove to be a game changer.We all know the Red Devils are far from their finest selves - there are flaws we could do without. But if they even manage to maintain the momentum they have gathered over the past few weeks, Manchester United can surely try to move up the table, or at least keep Man City from doing so!
