Five talking points from Manchester United's 1-0 win at Burnley

Manchester United were in high spirits before the game, given the imminent arrival of Alexis Sánchez, and they will have also been pleased with the result at Turf Moor.

The performance might have been lacking, but José Mourinho’s men have now kept the pressure on their across-town rivals. While a title challenge still looks far off, it is important Manchester United keep spirits high as they at least try to hunt Manchester City down.

Here are five talking points from Manchester United’s win against Burnley:

Manchester United’s lack of attacking impetus

While the good news is that Manchester United are on the verge of signing Arsenal forward Alexis Sánchez, the first half of this game showed exactly why they so desperately need a player who can get among the goals and be a valuable asset in attack.

AS IT HAPPENED: Burnley v Manchester United

READ MORE: Martial keeps up winning run for Man Utd

Burnley are an incredibly well-drilled team under Sean Dyche, and so it was always going to be difficult in breaking down their two banks of four with the strikers coming back to help. The Red Devils’ best chances were through the counter attack, but the Clarets recovered efficiently and quickly to make sure they thwarted the danger.

There were times throughout the match when Manchester United were in advanced areas of the pitch, but through selfishness and inadequacy, they failed to put the game out of sight.

Mourinho must find a way to break down teams in a more effective manner before they punish him, just as Huddersfield managed to achieve.

Romelu Lukaku’s link up play has improved massively

The Belgian international has received a fair amount of criticism this season for his ‘poor’ first touch and inability to connect with his teammates in an attacking manner.

However, Lukaku has evidently taken that on board with the way he is linking up with his forwards nowadays and provided another assist in what was a crucial goal to break the deadlock for the Red Devils.

His assist for Anthony Martial’s goal was spectacular, as he found the Frenchman with a lofted pass across the edge of the box on the turn with his left foot. It allowed Martial the space he needed to find the top corner and give Manchester United the lead. It was a beautiful finish and a perfect assist.

Lukaku is becoming far more involved in Man United’s overall play and he now looks more dangerous when in front of goal. He might be lacking in a few goals, but he has certainly made up for that in his instrumental team work.

Paul Pogba suits a 4-3-3 formation far better

It has been evident this season to see that the Frenchman is much better suited to a three-man midfielder, rather than playing in a two-man pivot with Nemanja Matić. At Juventus, Pogba played in a left central midfield role and the Bianconeri reaped the rewards of his attacking influence.

In recent weeks, Mourinho has trusted his team to play in a more expansive 4-3-3 formation, in which the Red Devils have been far more fluid in their approach and look more balanced as a team. Once Mourinho has his other midfield player to come in as an upgrade on Ander Herrera, it is expected that Man United will move forward playing in that style.

In the mean time, Pogba will seldom have the same licence of freedom if he is playing in a two-man midfield due to his defensive responsibilities as well. Against Burnley, he created a few chances and led his team forward, but it was clear he was not as willing to bombard up the pitch.

Anthony Martial in the form of his life

There were concerns over the way Mourinho would develop Martial given his ‘reputation’ of working with youngsters at the clubs he has managed. However, that premonition could not have been further from the truth as the Frenchman has excelled this season and is playing the best football of his career.

Played mostly down the left hand side, Martial once again showed his guile, intelligence and speed to create space for himself and beat his opposite man.

The former Monaco starlet constantly found himself in the right areas of the pitch as he managed three shots in the 90 minutes. Martial’s dribbling is his best asset as he waltzes past defenders with ease and create something from nothing.

If Martial can improve his decision making, then there is no reason why Martial cannot go on to the a truly world class player.

It was messy, but Manchester United deserved the win

Going to Turf Moor is never an easy game, no matter what form Burnley are in. But this was a Dyche team who have been phenomenal this year and are in contention for a Europa League finish.

Manchester United did not play at their best, especially in the first half, but they were convincing in the second half and should have score more goals than what they ended up with. It was disappointing in the department of finishing for the Red Devils, but Mourinho should be pleased with the amount of chances created.

Burnley were commendable in their approach and kept Man United at bay for large parts of the game – Mourinho’s men did not have a shot on-target until the 50th minute. But, in the end, United’s persistence paid off and Martial scored a delicious goal to claim the three points.

It was messy, it was uncultured, but, at the end of the day, the three points are what matters.