Manchester United required a late shimmer of inspiration from Bruno Fernandes to seal a 1-0 win at Craven Cottage on what was often a stale afternoon.
This was far from a textbook performance from Erik ten Hag's men but in the immediate aftermath, the only thing they will care about is the three points.
It started as a day of uncertainty with Marcus Rashford left out with an injury and Raphael Varane benched for Jonny Evans again, but they held their nerve against a Fulham outfit who had more shots than them.