Manchester United swept aside Everton in a comfortable 3-0 victory at Goodison Park this afternoon to remain within touching distance of league-leaders Manchester City.

Morgan Schneiderlin and Ander Herrera gave the Red Devils a two-goal advantage at the break before Wayne Rooney sealed the win midway through the second half.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the game to see whether the scoreline reflected the match.

Match statistics

EVERTON
Shots: 10
On target: 7
Possession: 53%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 14

MANCHESTER UNITED
Shots: 12
On target: 6
Possession: 47%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 12

Was the result fair?

Manchester United were undoubtedly the better side, but perhaps the 3-0 scoreline flattered them somewhat. Louis van Gaal's side were ruthless in front of goal and as soon as they went two goals ahead the result was never really in doubt.

Everton came out of the blocks in the second half, but as soon as the third goal went in Man Utd shut the game down expertly to see out the remaining half an hour.

Everton's performance

In terms of their overall performance, Everton were not particularly poor. They moved the ball into Romelu Lukaku well and Ross Barkley showed glimpses of his talent.

However, lapses in concentration let them down terribly. Schneiderlin and Herrara were both in acres of space inside the area for their goals - which were well taken, it must be said - before Phil Jagielka's careless distribution allowed Rooney a free run at goal to wrap up the game.

Manchester United's performance

In a word, ruthless. Van Gaal has a wealth of experience and it told today. The way his side pounced upon Everton's mistakes before shutting the game down was testament to his meticulous planning.

As soon as they went two goals ahead, there was a massed bank of red shirts resolutely defending their goal and they counter attacked with cohesion. Today's performance is up there with the best Man Utd have produced so far this season.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Ander Herrera: The Spanish midfielder has struggled to nail down a regular spot under Van Gaal, but he'll surely have an extended run in the side following this display. The 26-year-old expertly buried his header before laying Rooney's goal on a plate for him. What is more, his endeavour and tenacity was paramount in the long periods where Man Utd were on the back foot.

Biggest gaffe

As the most experienced Everton defender and captain of the side, Jagielka needed to set a better example. His terrible pass into midfield midway through the second half gifted Man Utd the ball and the centre-back couldn't recover to prevent Rooney from finishing the game off.

A few minutes later, he made exactly the same mistake as he tried to force play once more. It was certainly an afternoon to forget for the England international.

Referee performance

Jon Moss managed the game extremely well. The Goodison Park crowd were unhappy with a number of decisions as Man Utd made a number of clever, but cynical, fouls to wind down the clock. He booked a few players for particularly bad challenges and those who made one too many, but he was not card happy, which is always nice to see.

What next?

Everton: The Toffees are now without a win in their last two league games and it doesn't get much easier as they travel to face Arsenal next Saturday.

Manchester United: Van Gaal takes his side on the long trip to Russia to face CSKA Moscow in the Champions League on Wednesday. When they return to England, they will be thrown straight into a derby with Manchester City next Sunday.