Manchester United had to hold off a late fightback from Stoke City to claim their fourth consecutive victory this evening, eventually running out 2-1 victors to move within one point of third-placed Southampton.

A Steven N'Zonzi thunderbolt cancelled out a towering header from Marouane Fellaini in the first half, while Juan Mata and Marcos Rojo both claimed the winning goal when it went in just short of the hour mark.

Here, Sports Mole takes a look at who stood out during an absorbing match at Old Trafford.

MAN UTD

Goal

David de Gea: Had very little to do aside from picking the ball out of the back of his net until the 93rd minute. However, made two incredible saves in the dying stages to ensure that his side hung on for all three points. (8/10)

Defence

Antonio Valencia: Decent performance down the right flank, getting forward whenever possible and never being caught out defensively. (6/10)

Chris Smalling: Solid at the back for the hosts, continuing his recent improvement. Kept the Stoke attackers very quiet throughout. (6/10)

Marcos Rojo: Also contributed to a sturdy defensive performance, and had a say at the other end by claiming that he got a touch to Mata's free kick for the winning goal. Will be lucky to be awarded it, though. (7/10)

Ashley Young: Was a threat on the left flank coming forward, although his delivery could have been better on a couple of occasions. Also did his work defensively and was back on the line to make a crucial clearance with one of the last actions of the match. (7/10)

Midfield

Michael Carrick: Didn't stand out at all but kept United ticking over in the middle of the park. Tidy in possession without ever providing a cutting edge. (6/10)

Marouane Fellaini: Was heavily involved in the first half and got the opening goal with a fine leap and header at the back post. Did miss another good chance towards the end of the half, but all in all another decent performance from the big Belgian. (7/10)

Juan Mata: Will likely be credited with the winning goal as his free kick did not appear to get a touch on the way through. Capped off a good performance that saw him pull a few strings from midfield. (7/10)

Ander Herrera: Got the assist for the opening goal with a hanging cross to the back post. Missed a glorious chance of his own earlier in the game, but made up for that with some tidy passing. (7/10)

Attack

Robin van Persie: Failed to build on his goal at the weekend. Set up Herrera for a chance in the first half having been gifted the ball but faded after that and was anonymous for long periods. (5/10)

James Wilson: Went on one surging run through the defence but could not provide the finish. Full of energy as usual, but still yet to really stamp his mark on this team. (6/10)

Substitutes

Radamel Falcao: Replaced Wilson with a little over 10 minutes remaining but could not put his side out of sight. (6/10)

Darren Fletcher: Came on for Herrera in the 86th minute and was beaten too easily by Arnautovic on one occasion but helped United to just about cling on. (6/10)

Adnan Januzaj: Had a matter of minutes on the pitch having replaced Mata in injury time. (6/10)

STOKE

Goal

Asmir Begovic: A mixed bag. Got away with a terrible error having passed the ball straight to Van Persie, but atoned for that with a sensational stop at the end of the first half. Not much he could have done about either goal. (6/10)

Defence

Phil Bardsley: Had trouble dealing with both Young and Mata down his flank at times, but all in all a solid display against his former club. (6/10)

Ryan Shawcross: Conceded a few needless free kicks but did his job well defensively, keeping Van Persie quiet. (6/10)

Marc Wilson: Also stood up well to the United attack, helping to limit them to just three shots on target. (6/10)

Erik Pieters: Was a threat going forward at times, but didn't do enough defensively for the opening goal. Allowed Fellaini to soar above him at the back post without a real challenge. (5/10)

Midfield

Geoff Cameron: Moved forward into midfield for tonight's match and helped to make it tough for United to play through the visitors. (6/10)

Steven N'Zonzi: Stoke's best player on the night. Mopped up a number of attacks and was strong in midfield both defensively and going forward. Capped off his performance with a lovely goal to level the scores. (7/10)

Stephen Ireland: Failed to have much of an impact on the game from midfield. Was forced to spend most of his time chasing the ball as United controlled possession. (6/10)

Attack

Bojan Krkic: An increasingly bright spark for his side. Set up the late chances with his delivery into the box and also had a major say in the goal as his run resulted in the space for N'Zonzi to lash home. (7/10)

Mame Biram Diouf: Got very little joy up front and was left isolated throughout. Missed two glorious chances late on, although more credit should go to De Gea and Young than criticism to Diouf for those. Was left baffled at how he hadn't rescued a point for his side. (6/10)

Oussama Assaidi: Faded as the match wore on and struggled to have a positive impact before being withdrawn in the 77th minute. (5/10)

Substitutes

Peter Crouch: Brought on in place of Assaidi but could not provide the crucial goal Stoke were looking for. (6/10)

Marko Arnautovic: Won the late free kick that almost brought about an equaliser with a good run down the right, but otherwise could not make an impact during his short cameo. (6/10)