For more than half an hour, José Mourinho sat waiting on the Manchester United team coach outside St Mary’s doubtless basking in the comfort of a job well done after extending his side’s unbeaten run to eight matches. They displayed a callous efficiency and a charming stubbornness in an unforgiving and occasionally ugly performance that earned United victory and a fifth clean sheet in six Premier League matches. Romelu Lukaku, though, was still stationed inside in doping control, and, such is the ruthlessness of this United team at present, they left for Southampton airport without him.
Lukaku was ultimately the match‑winner but this was a result built upon steely foundations. Chris Smalling and Daley Blind offered late reinforcements and by the end United had six defenders on the pitch and sometimes eight, nine or even 10 men behind the ball. Lukaku was left estranged for large parts of the second half as a rejuvenated Southampton penned in the visitors.
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