Manchester United got back to winning ways with a confidence-inducing 3-0 win away at newly-promoted Southampton.

Erik ten Hag got pretty much his ideal game, as Matthijs de Ligt shook off a torrid international break to bounce back with his maiden goal, while Marcus Rashford got back to scoring ways.

Alejandro Garnacho added icing to the cake in his super-sub role to cap off a comfortable evening.

However, was it really that comfortable? It was, but only in the second half, before which the season-turning moment for Ten Hag had already happened.

Andre Onana’s pivotal moment
The FA Cup goal by Mark Robins that ‘saved’ Sir Alex Ferguson’s job at United, and now Andre Onana‘s save that ‘saved’ Ten Hag’s job?

Much will be made of how good United looked in this game and they did, but only after coming through the first 30 minutes battered and bruised.

Diogo Dalot was seeing stars against Tyler Dibling and the penalty he conceded was the final reward for the Saints.

However, Onana was determined to flip the script this time, as he lunged the correct way to push it out, also saving the follow-up shot

It is easy to envision a very different game, of an anxious United falling apart there and the home crowd getting into the game had Southampton scored.

As it happened, Onana saved Dalot’s and United’s blushes, the team felt a second wind in their sails, and De Ligt scored at the other end within the next three minutes.

United never looked back and after Rashford doubled the lead before the end of the first half, walked to a comfortable victory as Southampton were down in the dumps.

Ten Hag will thank Onana
It wasn’t said out loud, but it was pretty much an open secret that this was a must-win game for Ten Hag after losing two of the first three.

With seven games in the 22 days after the end of the international break, including this one, this is the stretch that makes or breaks Ten Hag’s tenure.

It looked like the tenure would break when Southampton had United on the ropes for the first 30 minutes which would have been capped off with a well-deserved goal at the time.

Onana didn’t let that happen and now, United face four eminently winnable games, three of which are at home, with the away trip to Crystal Palace the one tricky game.

Come through those four without a loss, and the picture will look much different at the end of September than it did at the start of it.