Manchester United vs Watford LIVE: Premier League result, final score and reaction today
Follow all the latest updates as the hosts look to keep up momentum in the top-four race
It may still be the case that Manchester United have only lost once since the 4-1 defeat at Vicarage Road which led to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s sacking and Ralf Rangnick’s interim appointment but draws like these are slowly eroding hopes of playing in next season’s Champions League.
Solskjaer’s conquerors Watford, under new management themselves, will celebrate this goalless draw at Old Trafford, even if the point does little to help Roy Hodgson’s side in their battle against the drop. It was yet another afternoon when United had their chances but did not take them.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s form is especially concerning. The Portuguese looked every inch the 37-year-old centre-forward that he is and may be contemplating whether he can stomach a season outside of European football’s elite competition. If he decides not, that may be the best thing for all parties concerned.
United remain fourth, two points clear of fifth-place Arsenal, but have played three games more. And worryingly, this visit of a Watford side sat second-bottom could be viewed as the last in a run of favourable fixtures dating all the way back to early December.
After next week’s derby at the Etihad, top-four rivals Tottenham pay a visit with the return leg against Atletico Madrid following three days later. Even if the subsequent trip to Anfield is postponed due to the FA Cup quarter-finals, as seems likely, Rangnick is entering a defining period. Follow reaction from Manchester United vs Watford below and coverage of Everton vs Man City:
Everton 0 - 0 Man City
57 mins: Save! Jordan Pickford to the rescue for Everton after Bernardo Silva comes in from the right and slides a pass over to Phil Foden. Foden hits a shot at goal with his first touch and opens up his left foot. He strikes it well but Pickford dives to his left and palms the ball away!
Everton 0 - 0 Man City
54 mins: Man City win a corner and whip the ball into the box. It gets headed out to Richarlison who flicks the ball over Rodri then runs into Ruben Dias and wins a free kick for Everton deep in his own half.
Dias isn’t happen about that decision saying Richarlison initiated the contact but the referee isn’t buying it.
Everton 0 - 0 Man City
51 mins: An Everton counter attack sees Doucoure, Richarlison and Iwobi sprint up the pitch. Doucoure carries the ball and slots it over to the left wing for Richarlison. He runs into trouble and squares the ball to Iwobi who has the keep it away from four defenders with no passing options and understandably loses possession.
Everton 0 - 0 Man City
48 mins: Chance! Raheem Sterling loses the ball in the middle of the pitch and Allan takes over. He flicks it over the high City line and plays Richarlison into the box. His runs seems good as the offside flag stays down allowing him to take a touch and guide a shot to the far bottom corner. Ederson it off his line quickly to narrow that gap and manages to stop the ball with an outstretched leg. Then the offside flag goes up so it wouldn’t have counted anyway.
Second half: Everton 0 - 0 Man City
Kick off: Everton get the match back underway. They’ve got 45 minutes to keep up their first half tempo and maybe sneak a victory against Man City.
No changes from either manager at the break.
Matty Cash sends message to Ukraine-based team-mate as Aston Villa beat Brighton
Matty Cash sent a message of support to a Poland team-mate stranded in Ukraine after scoring the opening goal in Aston Villa’s 2-0 win at Brighton.
The Villa full-back broke the deadlock with a fine early finish before taking off his shirt to reveal a “stay strong” message to Dynamo Kiev defender Tomasz Kedziora, receiving a caution in the process.
Ollie Watkins then scored his first goal since December in the 68th minute to wrap up Villa’s victory.
Matty Cash sends message to Ukraine-based team-mate as Aston Villa beat Brighton
Brighton 0-2 Aston Villa: Cash revealed his message after opening the scoring before Ollie Watkins wrapped up Villa’s victory in the second half
Christian Eriksen returns but 10-man Brentford’s slump continues with damaging defeat by Newcastle
With just over 52 minutes played in sunlit west London, as Brentford’s 10 men reckoned with a 2-0 defeat that will have huge implications on their Premier League survival, Christian Eriksen emerged from the shadow that has dominated the past eight months of his life.
If the horrifying images of his collapse last summer had already been banished from Eriksen’s own mind, they remained intact for those who were fortunate enough to witness the midfielder’s return here.
This was a moment that was impossible to envisage then, when the unimportance of a football match was thrust so jarringly into perspective, and felt no less astonishing now as Eriksen ran onto the pitch and past the memories that threatened to define him.
Amid all the emotion around his return, there remained a residual sense of apprehension that couldn’t be extinguished until this moment. There is still the small defibrillator fitted in Eriksen’s chest as a permanent assurance.
He unwillingly represents the innate fear hidden within all of us that the lives we build can be upended at a moment’s notice – a fact that could hardly be more pronounced in the world right now. And it is a beautiful contradiction that while football can be so utterly irrelevant, here it also represented such a meaningful escape.
Each time the ball arrived at Eriksen’s feet, with his presence alone restoring an urgency to Brentford’s ailing attack, it was no longer about miracles but simply the stakes of the match – the return to normality he has craved most of all.
Christian Eriksen returns but Brentford’s slump continues in defeat by Newcastle
Brentford 0-2 Newcastle United: Josh Dasilva was shown an early red card before goals by Joelinton and Joe Willock sent the visitors above their hosts in the Premier League table
Sean Dyche hails ‘important week’ for Burnley in battle for survival
Burnley boss Sean Dyche praised the mentality of his team after they fought back to earn a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace and make it a seven-point week.
Jeffrey Schlupp fired the hosts ahead after nine minutes in south London and the Clarets at this point looked to be struggling after vital but taxing recent wins over Brighton and Tottenham.
The visitors came out with more belief after the break and equalised within 40 seconds after Eagles captain Luka Milivojevic deflected Aaron Lennon’s cross into his own net to ensure both teams had to settle for a 12th draw in the Premier League this season.
Sean Dyche hails ‘important week’ for Burnley in battle for survival
Clarets extended their unbeaten run to three games after wins over Brighton and Tottenham.
Profligate Manchester United left frustrated by goalless draw with Watford
It may still be the case that Manchester United have only lost once since the 4-1 defeat at Vicarage Road which led to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s sacking last November and Ralf Rangnick’s subsequent appointment on an interim basis, but draws like this are slowly eroding hope of playing in next season’s Champions League.
Solskjaer’s conquerors Watford, under new management themselves, will celebrate this goalless draw at Old Trafford as one of the highlights of their season, even if the point does little to help Roy Hodgson’s side in their battle against the drop. For United, it was yet another afternoon when they had their chances but did not take them.
United remain fourth, two points clear of fifth-place Arsenal, but have played three games more. This was the fifth draw in 13 league games under Rangnick, the sixth time they have failed to win, and worryingly, this visit from a side second-bottom in the Premier League table could be viewed as the last fixture in a favourable run dating all the way back to his arrival.
Profligate Man United left frustrated by goalless draw with Watford
Manchester United 0-0 Watford: Ronaldo, Fernandes and Elanga all spurned gilt-edged chances as the Red Devils failed to take a firmer grip on fourth place
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