Henrikh Mkhitaryan open the scoring with a cool finish after he galloped onto Chris Smalling’s header in the 42nd minute and, with Leicester’s defence still recovering, Zlatan Ibrahimovic added a second two minutes later.
Juan Mata stroked home their third goal after some delightful link up play with Mkhitaryan in the 49th and United easily closed out the game against a Leicester side who have yet to score a league goal in 2017.
United stay sixth on 45 points but have cut the gap to Liverpool and Arsenal, one and two points above them in fifth and fourth respectively, while Leicester are 16th, one point above the relegation zone.
“It’s easy to play anywhere,” Mkhitaryan told Sky Sports, after manager Jose Mourinho’s tactical shift to deploy him behind Ibrahimovic saw United take control.
“When we are playing football, one-two passes are very easy no matter which position. We tried to change the formation during the game and that’s not something that is new for us.
“In this game the manager thought it was better I play behind the striker. It was his decision and I agreed and I was trying to do my best.”
