Manchester United finished the Premier League season in fifth place after seeing off Bournemouth 3-1 at Old Trafford on Tuesday night.
The Red Devils made a slow start to the rearranged final-day fixture, but they were ahead before the interval thanks to Wayne Rooney's 100th goal at the Theatre of Dreams.
Marcus Rashford and Ashley Young both added their names to the scoresheet in a one-sided second half, before Chris Smalling diverted Max Gradel's shot home for a late Cherries consolation.
Relive how the 90 minutes of action unfolded with Sports Mole's live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Premier League meeting between Manchester United and Bournemouth at Old Trafford. This fixture was initially scheduled to take place on Sunday afternoon, but a bomb scare - which later turned out to be a major security blunder - forced league officials to push the game back a couple of days.
It is not an ideal situation for either side, of course, with many players no doubt focused on trips to sunnier climates at the end of another gruelling campaign. There is still plenty to play for as far as the hosts are concerned, though, as they need a point to secure an automatic passage into the Europa League - thus avoiding an unwanted early qualifier in July.
With the match only being abandoned 20 minutes before kickoff on Sunday, both managers actually named their starting lineups a couple of days back. It has since been confirmed that both Louis van Gaal and Eddie Howe are free to shuffle their pack should they wish, though, so let us take a look at the updated starting lineups which have just been released.
TEAM NEWS!
MANCHESTER UNITED XI: De Gea; Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Borthwick-Jackson; Carrick, Rooney; Mata, Lingard, Martial; Rashford
BOURNEMOUTH XI: Federici; Francis, Elphick, Cook, Daniels; Ritchie, Gosling, Surman, Pugh; King, Wilson
So, pretty much as expected, Man United have gone with the same starting lineup from Sunday afternoon. Matteo Darmian and Marcos Rojo have each been given a couple of days' extra rest, but neither is fit enough to play a part in this one. Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, Michael Carrick and Jesse Lingard are the three new faces following last week's defeat to West Ham United.
Adnan Januzaj remains absent with a hamstring injury, while fellow midfield option Marouane Fellaini is still banned following his altercation with Robert Huth earlier this month. There is a place in the side for Juan Mata, however, who will be hugely disappointed to have missed out on Spain's squad for this summer's European Championships. The ex-Chelsea man will play alongside Lingard and Anthony Martial this evening, with Marcus Rashford again being given the nod up top.
Interestingly, Bournemouth have made one change to their starting lineup by bringing Dan Gosling into midfield in place of Harry Arter - a player who was yesterday linked with a move away from the club. Arter misses out, officially speaking at least, due to an Achilles injury, while Adam Federici remains in goals due to Artur Boruc's illness.
Sylvain Distin and Adam Smith both miss out due to their respective back and hernia problems, but other than that one change it is as you were from Sunday's original side. Despite a lack of any new injury concerns, Howe actually made five altercations to that initial lineup, as he perhaps turns focus more towards next season following an impressive maiden campaign at this level.
BENCH WATCH!
MANCHESTER UNITED SUBS: Romero, Varela, Jones, A. Pereira, Herrera, Young, Memphis
BOURNEMOUTH SUBS: Holmes, O'Kane, Jordan, Stanislas, Gradel, Grabban, Afobe
The Cherries' bench actually looks stronger than their opponents' on the face of it, particularly in an attacking sense where Benik Afobe, Junior Stanislas, Lewis Grabban and Max Gradel are all among the back-up options available to Howe. United can call upon Ander Herrera and Memphis Depay, meanwhile, as well as a couple of younger players who will no doubt be keen to make a further impact in this final league outing.
Harry Arter was linked with a move away from the club on Monday and, just 24 hours or so later, is left out of Bournemouth's final squad of the season. Nothing too suspicious in that, perhaps, except the midfielder was named in the initial starting lineup to face United just two days ago - certainly one to keep a close eye on!
So the dust has now finally settled on the Premier League season, this game aside, meaning we have a clear picture of how things can pan out over the coming hours. Should United win, they will move above Southampton into fifth place and will therefore progress through to the Europa League proper. A victory by 19 goals and the Red Devils will usurp rivals Manchester City into a Champions League berth which, if you fancy a flutter, is around 1,000-1 with most bookmakers - five times more likely that Leicester were to win the league!
Incredibly, even after such a poor season on the face of it, United still had their fate in their own hands heading into this final week of the season. Only defeat at West Ham seven days ago changed that, meaning Man City were given the chance to finally nail down a top-four berth after an inconsistent campaign of their own. They did just that when picking up a point at Swansea City on Sunday, leaving the Red Devils requiring a miracle of sorts if they are to avoid missing out on Europe's showpiece competition for just a second time in 25 years.
That each of those two seasons of missing out on the Champions League have come since Sir Alex Ferguson departed from Old Trafford really does say it all. The David Moyes tenure ended in a horrible fashion, while the days of Van Gaal also appear to be numbered if recent reports are to be believed. A run of one defeat in 11 leading up to that Upton Park showdown a week ago actually saw talk of his departure die down a little but, now that the top four is out of the question, Jose Mourinho is surely being readied to take over.
DID YOU KNOW? Manchester United have won six of their last seven games at Old Trafford, drawing the other in a 2-2 stalemate with Leicester City recently. Only the Foxes can better the Red Devils' home points tally this season, in fact, claiming 42 compared to United's 38 - albeit having played one game more.
United have also only shipped eight goals at the Theatre of Dreams this season - fewer than any other side in the division. That can largely be put down to the incredible form of David de Gea once again, of course, but Van Gaal does also deserve some praise for at least putting together a strong structure throughout the side. The one downfall of that is the lack of goals scored at the other end of the field - just 46 all term.
Unless the hosts find the net 12 times tonight, this will be their lowest scoring season since 1989-90 when they also bagged just 46. That poor tally, combined with a likely fifth-placed finish, makes it quite clear to see just why supporters have grown s frustrated over the past 12 month. United do have an FA Cup final to look forward to in just four days' time, of course, but even that may not be enough to save Van Gaal heading into the final year of his three-season contract.
Finishing fifth, while also claiming a piece of silverware - rare in the days since Fergie departed - would not be so bad if this had been a season of transition. The fact the Red Devils spent big once more last summer, however, means anything less than a serious title challenge was always going to end badly for the Dutchman. Incredibly, the margin on runaway champions Leicester in a whopping 18 points as things stand - simply not good enough for a club of this stature.
Louis van Gaal has grown under increasing pressure during the second year of his Manchester United tenure, with reports suggesting that Jose Mourinho is waiting in the wings to take over this summer. The best case scenario for the Dutchman this season is a fifth-placed finish and an FA Cup crown, but it remains to be seen whether that will be enough to save his skin.
While United are looking to wrap-up a place in the top five, Bournemouth are jostling for position in the lower half of the table. The Cherries head into this final match of the 2015-16 season - their first in the Premier League - sitting in 16th place. Howe will be delighted with the way this campaign has panned out for his side, with relegation never seriously in the question in recent months. A slump in form to see out the term is not ideal, of course, but it has been job done for a while now.
It is just four points from a possible 21 for the Cherries, with their only win in the last seven coming at basement boys Aston Villa. Bournemouth deserve huge praise for the way they have gone about their business this season, but in many ways the hard work now begins all over again as they aim to establish themselves at this level. Arter, Matt Ritchie and Callum Wilson have already been linked with moves away - the latter two to West Ham in a rumoured £25 double swoop - so Howe will need to work hard to keep his playing party intact.
Bournemouth will certainly not be fazed by the prospect of playing at Old Trafford, through, even when taking into consideration the Red Devils' record here this season, as they have actually won more games on their travels (6) than they have on the South Coast (5) since earning promotion to the big time. Their problems have come at the back, in large, with 64 goals - second worse only to Villa - being conceded this year.
Leicester City are very much the story of this season, of course, while Spurs and Watford have also done very well, but Bournemouth have quietly gone under the radar in recent months en route to a possible 14th-placed finish. A win tonight will lift them just four spots of the top half, and a final position of eight points above the relegation zone - their only real target this season, in truth.
An honest Eddie Howe admitted after that abandoned fixture at Old Trafford that he would find it difficult to motivate his players for tonight, claiming that many of his squad would indeed have their focus elsewhere. It is easy to see why, with the season now officially over for 17 other sides in the league who do not have cup commitments to look forward to. Surely, though, winning at Old Trafford - even in these testing times for Man United - is something to work hard to achieve.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS! Bournemouth won the reverse fixture 2-1 at the Goldsands Stadium - the first ever league meeting between the two. Stanislas and Joshua King scored the goals on that December afternoon, either side of Marouane Fellaini's goal in the first half. The Cherries have lost on each of their four previous cup visits to Old Trafford, though, conceding 12 and scoring zero.
With kickoff now just 10 minutes away at Old Trafford, let us check out some of the pre-match thoughts from both camps.
Louis van Gaal: "Still, I have to remind you that we can qualify ourselves. Okay, so we are speaking 'if' and I don't like 'if' - it has to be facts, but I can say what we have to improve still, because I don't think we have to improve defensive organisation too much because we are doing well. We have to score more in our attacking organisation. That is what I have said before this season - that we need creative, fast players in attack. We have to change that and that is very important."
Eddie Howe: "It was a real anti-climax to a day everyone had been looking forward to. Our players were well and truly focused on end-of-season meetings and looking forward to a well-earned rest so it is going to be very difficult mentally for them to adjust to what has happened. United treated us very well. They put us in a nice area and we were able to relax and see what was going to happen next. We decided to come back to Bournemouth because there was no sign of the game being played the next day."
It is worth pointing out that Van Gaal's comments came before that initial fixture was due to take place a couple of days ago and, while he is technically still correct about his side being able to reach the top four, surely even the Dutchman knows it is now out of reach. A quick reminder - 19 goals are needed to better Man City's goal difference, so finishing fifth is the best the Red Devils can hope for.
PREDICTION! This really is a bizarre situation, with Premier League chiefs being given a real headache after being forced to fit this match into a tight end-of-season schedule. As it turns out, the top four is effectively out of reach for the hosts, while Bournemouth are merely jostling for position in the lower half of the division. That said, defeat really could provide the final nail in Van Gaal's coffin, regardless of events at Wembley next Saturday, so he will be desperate for a final-day victory here.
Both sets of players have now made their way out on to the field of play, with kickoff around four minutes away - hopefully! No sign of this one being called off, so fingers crossed we will have an entertaining contest to round off what has been a truly remarkable season in the English top flight.
A chance for Bournemouth to pick up a league double over United, then, while the Red Devils know that they need a victory to ensure that this has not been their worst ever Premier League season on that front. The Red Devils are ready to get us underway at the Theatre of Dreams...
KICKOFF! United get things going at Old Trafford, greeted by immediate chants of "Attack! Attack! Attack!" from home supporters. The ground is looking very sparse this evening, incidentally, with I would say around 50,000 in attendance.
It will be interesting to see how Rashford performs this evening, a little over 24 hours after being named in England's initial squad for Euro 2016. A bad first touch lets him down on this occasion, but plenty of time for the youngster to make one final impact at club level in the Premier League.
Not a great deal of pace to the game at the moment, certainly not helped by the under-capacity crowd at Old Trafford this evening. Certainly can't blame supporters for staying away, mind, with many clearly having other commitments this evening or simply unable to make it to Manchester.
Some very good play by United, which begins with Rooney spraying one of those now-trademark passes out to Valencia, who in turns lofts one over for Martial. No way through on this occasion, with just a corner for the hosts to show for their efforts.
Valencia so nearly played through on goal, but the South American struggled to control the ball and was flagged offside anyway. Rooney, again, with a superb searching ball to pick out his teammate down the right. Both Bournemouth full-backs need to remain alert all night.
United pretty much dictating this game at the moment, winning a corner and a couple of free kicks in dangerous positions which they have so far been unable to capitalise on. The latest set-piece, taken by Blind, is headed away before Carrick can make contact.
Small cries for handball when the ball is blocked away inside the Bournemouth box, but there was very little in it. The Cherries completely pegged back at the moment, unable to leave their own half due to some constant pressure.
The game has taken a familiar pattern now; United completely dominating possession but not really being able to create any chances of note. Bournemouth supporters making plenty of noise at the moment, knowing that they have nothing to lose this evening.
Still no shots on goal of any sort so far, in a game that has so far been extremely subdued. Typical United in many ways, with plenty of the ball - particularly in the final third - but not enough movement to create openings.
A ball down the right flank gives Lingard a chance to race in behind Daniels, but the Bournemouth full-back does very well to get back and block the ball to prevent a cross. Hard to be too critical of the hosts so far, but they need to start creating chances.
This game does, as many expected, have an end-of-season fell to it. It is certainly worth United nailing down fifth place, but they do not have too much urgency about their game so far, with nearly a quarter of the contest now played.
Plenty of 'nearly' moments for United, the latest of which arrived when Mata's scooped pass was just about cut out, but still nothing to really shout about. Eddie Howe will surely want to see more from his players, too, with the game almost exclusively being played in his side's half of the field.
Smalling has to be alert to prevent Wilson getting in on goal. "This is a library," is the chant from the visiting section of fans - 25 minutes in and still absolutely nothing in the way of goalmouth action at a quiet Old Trafford.
Federici reads the danger well to race out and collect possession before Lingard can get there. A goal now from either wide would do nicely, with neither showing any sort of urgency in the attacking third of the pitch.
A stray pass in the defensive third of the field goes to nobody in particular, leading to more than a few groans from home supporters. Such a strange feel to this game, which at this rate is almost certainly going to end goalless.
CLOSE! Rashford drops deep in an attempt to win the ball, earning a free kick for his troubles. A rare touch for the Englishman, that, with this one passing him by so far. The set-piece is delivered well by Rooney, seemingly going right through for Federici to gather.
That is, incredibly, the closest we have come to a goal. Carrick almost got a telling touch to the ball in front of Federici, but it was a straightforward catch in the end for the Bournemouth keeper. Will that kick-start the hosts at long last?
Worth mentioning that a point will do United tonight in terms of finishing above Southampton in fifth, but it is not the way Van Gaal would want to do it. This is very close to the same side that will start against Crystal Palace, but there will only be one winner on Saturday if this performance is repeated.
BLOCK! Half a chance for Pugh, as a ball down the right is won by Ritchie and worked into a central position. Pugh could not direct his shot on target, though, with the effort being blocked away by Valencia for the hosts to mount a counter of their own.
Borthwick-Jackson appeared to be seriously hurt during that Bournemouth attack, incidentally, which would have provided a big talking point had Bournemouth scored because they had no intention of putting the ball out of play. The full-back is now back to his feet, so clearly nothing too serious.
Half time drawing nearer and nearer now, with no sign of either net being breached at the moment. United have had the only shot on target so far, and even that was a long-range free kick from Rooney which appeared to be more of a cross than anything.
GOAL! MANCHESTER UNITED 1-0 BOURNEMOUTH (WAYNE ROONEY)
A very well worked goal from United, pretty much out of nothing. Martial played a key part, linking up well with Mata inside the box before playing the ball across for Rooney to divert home - his 100th Premier League goal at Old Trafford. Special mention for Rashford, too, who allowed the ball to run past him for his better-positioned teammate.
Just the one minute of added time, which we are now halfway through, so it looks as though the Red Devils will head into the interval ahead after all. Elphick has just caught Rashford late, but referee Jonathan Moss did not appear to see it.
HALF TIME: MANCHESTER UNITED 1-0 BOURNEMOUTH
Manchester United lead Bournemouth 1-0 at the break, courtesy of Wayne Rooney's 100th Premier League goal at Old Trafford. It has been far from a classic, in truth, but we did have that one moment of quality to light up the game late on in the first half.
The opening half-hour of the game elapsed without a single attacking move of note - not one! The Red Devils certainly looked the brighter of the two teams, but they just lacked that urgency required in the final third of the field. Their only attempt prior to their breakthrough came 31 minutes in when Rooney's free kick went right through the box for Federici to collect.
The Cherries have yet to muster a single shot on target, meanwhile, with their best - and so far only - chance arriving around 37 minutes in when Ritchie made good inroads down the right. The ball was worked to Pugh inside the box, but his shot was well blocked away in front of goal by Valencia. It looked as though the visitors would hold out until the break, until Rooney pounced from close range.
BENCH WATCH!
MANCHESTER UNITED SUBS: Romero, Varela, Jones, A. Pereira, Herrera, Young, Memphis
BOURNEMOUTH SUBS: Holmes, O'Kane, Jordan, Stanislas, Gradel, Grabban, Afobe
Manchester United lead Bournemouth 1-0 at half time, in a game that has seen very minimal chances so far. Just the one, in fact, which Wayne Rooney tucked away from close range a few minutes prior to the break. Both sets of players now back out with us for this second half.
RESTART! Bournemouth get proceedings back underway at Old Trafford, aiming to recover after that late setback in the first half. United have started the half the better, though, with Rooney's shot being blocked away on the edge of the box.
Both Rooney and Wilson have had shots blocked in the early stages of this second half, so already it looks as though we are in for a more exciting conclusion to the match. The onus very much on Bournemouth to find a leveller now.
SHOT! Dan Gosling sends his shot a good yard over the bar from 18 yards out, having been put under real pressure from Lingard. A much better feel to this second half now, with both sides looking to mount attacks rather than keep hold of the ball in areas where it does not really count.
PENALTY APPEAL! United denied what looked a solid penalty to me, as Mata is brought down by Cook inside the area following some nice link-up play once more in the attacking third. No real shouts from home supporters, but replays show that the Spaniard was definitely touched before going to ground.
OFF THE BAR! The Red Devils getting closer and closer to that important second goal, with Carrick's swerving shot from 25 yards out cannoning back off the crossbar. A real belter from the England midfielder, who got the better of Federici but not the frame of the goal.
Bournemouth just struggling to keep themselves afloat in this game at the moment. They win themselves a free kick in a promising position, which they make a complete farce of with the ball going straight out for a goal kick.
A cracking cross from Borthwick-Jackson from the left, which goes between keeper and defence, is not pounced on by a player in red. The young full-back did all he could there, really, but he just needed a teammate to take a chance.
CLOSE! United may well rue not taking these numerous chances. Rashford does well to create something down the right, which ends with Mata's shot being blocked before Lingard's shot was deflected a yard wide of goal. Valencia's shot from the next attack forces a wonderful save out of Federici.
Smalling out-muscles his opponent, but can only divert his back-post header a few inches wide of the target. Real domination from the Red Devils now, with chances to match their possession - it is now just a case of sticking the ball in the net with an hour played.
SAVE! Mata twists and turns on the edge of the box but can only send a rather tame shot down the middle for Federici to get down and collect. Bournemouth actually looking to make a change shortly, by the looks of it, with their young back-up goalkeeper going through his warm-up routine.
YELLOW CARD! A niggling challenge from Mata in the middle of the park sees him earn the game's first caution. A little harsh, in my opinion, but he will now have to be careful to avoid a second red of the season.
BOURNEMOUTH SUBS! Benik Afobe, a man who scored twice against the Red Devils for MK Dons last season, is on in place of Joshua King. Max Gradel also introduced, with Marc Pugh - who had a rare sight of goal for his side - the man to make way.
Daniels makes another superb challenge to deny Lingard, who did well to initially get in behind the full-back. Shouts for a penalty, but Daniels quite clearly got the ball before the man inside the box.
It was a poor performance from Manchester United for the first 40 minutes of this match but, particularly since going ahead, they have well and truly dominated. The one negative is that they still only have one goal to their name, of course, so Bournemouth still in with a chance of rescuing a point.
Wilson puts the ball past De Gea into the back of the net following a rare visiting attack in this second half, but the offside flag was already up. Van Gaal appears to be readying a couple of players for this final quarter of the match, with all three subs still available to him.
GOAL! MANCHESTER UNITED 2-0 BOURNEMOUTH (MARCUS RASHFORD)
It is another well-worked goal for the hosts, who have a deserved second goal for their second-half efforts. A sweeping Rooney pass from deep was headed into a central position by Valencia for Rashford to rifle home. The Red Devils well in control of this one now.
MANCHESTER UNITED SUB! That is now eight goals for Rashford since making his senior debut in February, incidentally - quite some return for a player not many had heard just two months ago! The youngster has now been taken off, with Depay on for the remainder.
Just 10 minutes of this game, and indeed the season, left to play. Unless Bournemouth can find a way through soon, we will not see one more twist to this Premier League campaign. The Red Devils deserved winners as things stand, having dominated this second half in particular.
Depay glances his header wide of the far post when picked out around five yards from goal, but the offside flag was already up anyway. The Red Devils looking to score a third, but they still need 16 to overtake Man City into fourth place.
MANCHESTER UNITED SUB! I'm surprised Martial lasted this long, with the FA Cup final now just four days away, but he is finally taken off for a deserved rest. Ashley Young provides the fresh legs for United, with six minutes to play.
Benteke scored a wonderful overhead kick here with Liverpool in the first half of the season, and Cook tries his luck with a similar attempt that ends well over the bar. A Cherries goal now will make things interesting, but it does not look like coming.
GOAL! MANCHESTER UNITED 3-0 BOURNEMOUTH (ASHLEY YOUNG)
Young makes certain of the three points by tucking away goal number three of the match, but this was all about a fine pass from Rooney to play him through. A chipped pass allowed the substitute to burst through, and he was never really going to miss when left one-on-one.
Three minutes of added time to be played at Old Trafford, providing the visitors with just a little chance to pull one back. It is looking like being a comfortable win for the Red Devils, though, which is the least they deserve.
GOAL! MANCHESTER UNITED 3-1 BOURNEMOUTH (CHRIS SMALLING, OG)
A goal for Bournemouth - their first ever at Old Trafford in five attempts - right at the death as Gradel's off-target shot is turned into his own net by Smalling, denying De Gea a clean sheet record for the club.
FULL TIME: MANCHESTER UNITED 3-1 BOURNEMOUTH
There was to be no clean sheet for David de Gea, then, in what could still quite well be his final home league game for the club. That Chris Smalling own goal takes just a little shine off the result, but it was a decent enough win for the Red Devils in the end who did what was required to get the job done.
That means United will go straight through to the Europa League proper next season, regardless of their fortunes in the FA Cup final on Saturday, avoiding an fixture-congesting qualifier in late July. Bournemouth, on the other hand, finish their season in 16th place and with just just four points from the last 24 on offer. It was a season to remember for the Cherries on the whole, though, and they can head back south with their heads held high after this gruelling maiden Premier League campaign.
Well that concludes Sports Mole's live text coverage of tonight's events at Old Trafford, and indeed of this season's Premier League action! Be sure to stick around for reaction aplenty over the next hour, starting with Louis van Gaal who has plenty to say as ever.
