Manchester United beat Derby to move one point behind Arsenal while Derby scored their first away goal of the season.
Reds win but Derby net first away goal of the season
Manchester United put four past bottom of the table Derby, moving them to within one point of leaders Arsenal.
Ryan Giggs scored his 100th league goal for the club when he latched onto a rebounded Cristiano Ronaldo shot, opening the scoring for United after 40 minutes.
Ronaldo was at the centre of the action again after 44 minutes when his free kick eventually landed at the feet of Carlos Tevez who took advantage of a fall from Andy Griffin to double United's lead.
Manchester United continued to pile the pressure on Derby and scored a third goal after an hour when Wes Brown played in Tevez, who had plenty of time to power a shot past Stephen Bywater.
Derby continued to attack and were rewarded with their first away goal of the season thanks to substitute striker Steve Howard who bundled the ball over the line.
The Rams began to play some neat passes but the game was finished off when Tyrone Mears was adjudged to have brought down Ronaldo in the penalty area. He stepped up to convert the penalty into the bottom right of Bywater's goal.
Away day blues
Having noted Derby conceded four at Tottenham, five at Arsenal and six at Liverpool already this season, the home fans took their seats and waited for the inevitable slaughter.
For a frustratingly long period, it did not look like happening as Derby set about their task with admirable enthusiasm.
Giles Barnes was especially impressive and had one of the two shots which tested Edwin van der Sar during the opening period.
James McEveley had the other and had either found the net, United might well have been in trouble such was the disjointed nature of their play.
With half-time approaching and no doubt fearful of a tongue-lashing from their manager, United increased the pace notably.
Predictably, it took an injection of brilliance from a previously quiet Ronaldo to break the Rams' resistance.
Picking up a loose ball on the left edge of the Derby area, Ronaldo darted into the box, then drove a powerful shot at goal which, on a sodden surface, keeper Bywater was unable to hold.
There have been many more memorable strikes among Giggs' previous 99 and a number of more important ones. But few will have been greeted with such an audible sigh of relief.
Wayne Rooney should have doubled United's lead on their next attack when he collected Giggs' lofted pass and sent Bywater to the ground with the kind of neat footwork his good friend Hatton would have been proud of.
For some reason though, Rooney took aim before he had taken Bywater completely out of the equation and in chipping his shot over the prone keeper, sent it bouncing onto a post.
Apart from his triggering his own annoyance, Rooney's miss did not prove costly at all given Tevez was soon blasting home after Ronaldo's delicate free-kick had caused mayhem in the Derby area.
Unfortunate
Derby continued to impress after the re-start but such is the lopsided nature of their fight for survival, the scoreline only got worse.
Giggs might have had another but drove Wes Brown's far-post cross against the post.
It was Brown who supplied the pass for Tevez that led to number three on the hour mark, the South American mercilessly punishing Dean Leacock's failure to close him down by driving a shot into the bottom corner.
If nothing else, Jewell must take heart from the way his team still refused to buckle and Howard's effort was the very least they deserved as consolation.
It was, though, United that had the final say as Ronaldo dusted himself down to convert from the penalty spot after he had been felled by Mears.
| Manchester United |
Team Statistics |
Derby County |
| 4 |
Goals |
1 |
| 2 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 8 |
Shots on Target |
5 |
| 12 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 5 |
Blocked Shots |
2 |
| 10 |
Corners |
3 |
| 13 |
Fouls |
13 |
| 2 |
Offsides |
0 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
2 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 83.8 |
Passing Success |
72.6 |
| 12 |
Tackles |
28 |
| 83.3 |
Tackles Success |
57.1 |
| 61.4 |
Possession |
38.6 |
| 54.5 |
Territorial Advantage |
45.5 |
|
