Brazilian midfielder Fred curled in a 77th-minute winner, as Ralf Rangnick made a winning start as Manchester United's interim manager, with a 1-0 Premier League win over Crystal Palace at Old Trafford.
United struggled to create clear chances against Patrick Vieira's well-drilled side, but Fred beat Vincente Guaita with a wonderful strike from the edge of the box, after being set up by substitute Mason Greenwood.
Palace should have gone ahead minutes earlier, but Jordan Ayew missed from point-blank range at the back post, after James Tomkins headed down a corner.
United moved up to sixth place on the table on 24 points, three behind fourth-placed West Ham United. Palace slipped to 12th on 16 points.
German Rangnick led United for the first time, after taking over from caretaker manager Michael Carrick on the weekend, and made a low-key entrance to his new home ground, with no announcement of his presence.
Former RB Leipzig coach Rangnick has promised to turn United into "pressing monsters" in the manner of Juergen Klopp's Liverpool, but says that approach will take time to instill in the players.
There were clear signs of that shift in emphasis in the opening 25 minutes, as United's forward players closed down the Palace defenders and limited their ability to play out from the back.
Rangnick opted for a formation with Marcus Rashford and Cristiano Ronaldo in attack, with Jadon Sancho and Bruno Fernandes operating behind them.
Portuguese midfielder Fernandes had a chance to open the scoring after an excellent header from compatriot Ronaldo, but his mishit shot was saved by Guaita.
Again preferred to Aaron Wan-Bissaka at right back, Diogo Dalot worked an opening just before the break, but fired his left-foot shot high and wide.
United struggled to build on the promising start, losing their way after the break, with sloppy passing, and a drop off in their movement and pressure.
But Rangnick will be pleased his team limited Palace's effectiveness on the break, with dangerous winger Wilfried Zaha making little impact.
United left-back Alex Telles clipped the bar with a dipping free-kick from a tight angle, before Ayew wasted his golden chance to beat David De Gea.
Then came Fred's moment of inspiration and the defensive midfielder, whose limitations have drawn plenty of criticism during United's poor start to the season, was mobbed by his teammates in celebration.
"Fred has these moments, one shot per year," says Fernandes. "Everyone is happy for him, because he's such a nice guy.
"He works a lot and people don't talk about him. He deserves the praise."
Vieira felt his team deserved more.
"When we had that chance with Jordan, we didn't take it," he says. "Against the big teams, you get punished - in these games you have to score those.
"With their new manager, we didn't know how they would play, but we prepared with our shape. When you look at their chances, I think a draw would have been a fair result."
Spurs score 3-0 win over Norwich
An early goal from Lucas Moura, and two after halftime from Davinson Sanchez and Son Heung-min have ensured a third successive Premier League win for Tottenham Hotspur, as they beat Norwich City 3-0 at home.
Victory lifted Spurs into fifth place, with 25 points from 14 matches, 10 points off the top of the table, but with a game in hand, as new manager Antonio Conte continued to make an impact.
Spurs had scored three goals for the first time in a home league game this season.
Leeds United's returning striker Patrick Bamford struck in added time, as they snatched a 2-2 draw against Brentford at Elland Road.
Brentford are 11th on the table and Leeds 14th.
Reuters
