Another moment of magic from sub James McAtee, off the bench at half-time, was the difference between the two sides, while Iliman Ndiaye had a later strike ruled out for a foul on goalkeeper Max O’Leary by Billy Sharp.
Here’s how we rated United's players after what could prove to be a huge win in the context of their promotion push...
![United's best player by some way, often left in a potentially-dangerous position with Ahmedhodzic and Robinson playing high but coped well with everything thrown at him - whether on the ground or in the air - with the minimum of fuss. Seemed to make every decision correctly on when to stand off his man and when to make contact with them. Even made some late forays forward with the ball](https://www.thestar.co.uk/webimg/b25lY21zOjBiMWMwZDBkLWZhMjUtNDI4MS1iZDY3LWJhNTMwZDlkNmZhMzpjNTgxODQ1OC0yNTBhLTQxMWQtOTQ2NS1kNGM1ODE0NmU3N2M=.jpg?crop=3:2&width=640)
5. John Egan 8
United's best player by some way, often left in a potentially-dangerous position with Ahmedhodzic and Robinson playing high but coped well with everything thrown at him - whether on the ground or in the air - with the minimum of fuss. Seemed to make every decision correctly on when to stand off his man and when to make contact with them. Even made some late forays forward with the ball Photo: Simon Bellis
![Produced one of the highlights of a drab game with a lovely 360-degree turn to get away from his marker as City looked to press United high late in the game.](https://www.thestar.co.uk/webimg/b25lY21zOmZkNTVmZTMyLThjNzgtNGQ1OC1hZTY4LTUyYmY1OGVkNzQxZTpkMGIxNWY1NS1lMDY5LTRmZmQtYjk3OS0wYThlOGFhZDEzY2Q=.jpg?crop=3:2&width=640)
6. Jack Robinson 6
Produced one of the highlights of a drab game with a lovely 360-degree turn to get away from his marker as City looked to press United high late in the game. Photo: Andrew Yates
![Struggled to assert his authority on the game in the first half but to be fair he was far from alone in that respect. Solid rather than spectacular from the Blades left-back, although a lapse in communication that saw him put the ball out for a corner under no pressure whatsoever didn't help. Could have had an assist late on when he picked out Jebbison well but the young man somehow blazed over when perfectly placed to score](https://www.thestar.co.uk/webimg/b25lY21zOjgyYzZlYjIyLWUzOTMtNDg3YS1iZjU0LWQ0NTQ2OTRlMDNhYzoyOTA0YjVlMS1iYzc1LTRhNTctOWM5ZS05MWJjZTEyNDg3OWU=.jpg?crop=3:2&width=640)
7. Max Lowe 6
Struggled to assert his authority on the game in the first half but to be fair he was far from alone in that respect. Solid rather than spectacular from the Blades left-back, although a lapse in communication that saw him put the ball out for a corner under no pressure whatsoever didn't help. Could have had an assist late on when he picked out Jebbison well but the young man somehow blazed over when perfectly placed to score Photo: Andrew Yates
![Another good shift in midfield from the Man City man, who never hid from the ball and also did his fair share of defensive work when needed. Looked better in the second half when United managed to up the tempo a little after a sluggish first half display before making way for Norwood - possibly to get some minutes into his legs ahead of Wembley?](https://www.thestar.co.uk/webimg/b25lY21zOjQwZWViZWVkLThlYzEtNDIzNC1iZjI3LTJmYTcxZmVhMjdmYjpmYTkxYjMxZS03YWU1LTQ2N2QtYTA3OC1iMGE2ZDE3NzQwZTk=.jpg?crop=3:2&width=640)
8. Tommy Doyle 6
Another good shift in midfield from the Man City man, who never hid from the ball and also did his fair share of defensive work when needed. Looked better in the second half when United managed to up the tempo a little after a sluggish first half display before making way for Norwood - possibly to get some minutes into his legs ahead of Wembley? Photo: David Davies