Louis van Gaal believes Manchester United's "fighting spirit" helped the club all-but secure fourth in the Premier League at Crystal Palace.
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal conceded his side was not at its best as it saw off Crystal Palace to move to the brink of securing a return to the Champions League.
Juan Mata's penalty and a Marouane Fellaini effort either side of Jason Puncheon's free kick helped United to a 2-1 triumph that takes the club seven points clear of Liverpool, which will be unable to overhaul its great rival if defeated by Chelsea on Sunday.
United came into the fixture at Selhurst Park on the back of three consecutive defeats without scoring, although Van Gaal saw little improvement from those games on Saturday.