EPL: Cristiano Ronaldo stars as Manchester United see off Brentford with 3-0 win

Cristiano Ronaldo. Pic/AFP

Manchester United's hopes of qualifying for next season's UEFA Europa League received a boost as they recorded a comfortable 3-0 victory over Brentford on Monday night.

Bruno Fernandes, Cristiano Ronaldo and Raphael Varane were the goalscorers to give United their biggest win under Ralf Rangnick.

The last match for United at the Theatre of Dreams for this campaign saw a first-half goal from Bruno Fernandes after just nine minutes.

A Cristiano Ronaldo penalty after 61 minutes, made it 2-0 as it capped an entertaining performance from the no.7. Raphael Varane also scored his first-ever goal for the club in the 72nd minute to round off the evening.

Man Utd's first victory in four top-flight matches means they lie in sixth place, three points behind Tottenham Hotspur in fifth spot, but having played two matches more. Crucially, the win provides a six-point cushion between them and West Ham United in seventh.

Sixth place will earn a spot in the UEFA Europa League, while seventh will qualify for the Europa Conference League.

Ronaldo's penalty, his 18th Premier League goal of the campaign, means he has closed the gap to leader Mohamed Salah in the race for this season's Golden Boot. Salah is currently on 22 goals.

United have two fixtures left to play, with Brighton & Hove Albion next up on Saturday.

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