Man United returned to winning ways as they went level on points with Chelsea after a victory over Wolves.
Champions dispatch under-strength Wolves in comfortable win
Manchester United returned to winning ways as they went level on points with Chelsea at the top of the Premier League with a comfortable victory over a weakened Wolves.
Sir Alex Ferguson's 900th league game in charge of the Red Devils saw the United boss bidding to avoid successive defeats at Old Trafford and they looked odds-on to do that when Wanderers boss Mick McCarthy made 10 changes to the side that won at Tottenham at the weekend.
The visitors made a decent fist of keeping out the champions in the opening exchanges but when defender Ronald Zubar blatantly handballed on the half-hour mark, Wayne Rooney made no mistake from the spot-kick to put the hosts ahead.
Wolves desperately needed to not concede before half-time, but they could not hold out Nemanja Vidic's bullet header just before the break.
Antonio Valencia continued his hot-streak in front of goal as he smashed in a delightful half-volley midway into the second-half after a glorious assist by Dimitar Berbatov to add the finishing touches on a win which restores parity for United, who join Chelsea on 37 points.
Blistering attack
Angry Wolves fans launched a blistering attack on manager McCarthy for a team selection that virtually handed Ferguson victory on a plate.
Chants of "we want our money back", "where is our first team?" and "£40 to watch the reserves" bellowed out of the visiting section after McCarthy kept just Marcus Hahnemann to the side from Saturday's White Hart Lane success.
But the Irishman had his reasons for making wholesale changes, notably the weekend encounter with Burnley, one of the sides who rose from the Championship with Wolves last term, and the West Midlanders have five days to lick their wounds from the Old Trafford trouncing.
For half an hour the hardy band of travelling fans had plenty to cheer as their representatives gave everything in the Wanderers cause.
If Rooney had taken the third minute opening that presented itself when Darron Gibson's shot crashed into him, the landslide the team sheets suggested might have materialised.
Instead, Hahnemann made a close-range save, as he did to deny the England striker when he got on the end of Patrice Evra's low cross midway through the half.
It seemed barely credible the visitors should give United any more assistance.
But that is exactly what Zubar did as he rose to head away Gibson's corner under minimal pressure and instead punched it out of the area.
Having been so lethargic before, Rooney upped the pace by drilling home his 13th goal of the season.
Relentless
Once in front, there was never any real suggestion United would not join Chelsea at the league summit, having failed in that objective against Aston Villa at the weekend.
On his first league start, Gabriel Obertan was guilty of taking too much time to get his crosses in, a failing that Cristiano Ronaldo received a few admonishments for earlier in his career.
If the young French winger needed any proof the direct route was best, he got it when Vidic rose highest at a Gibson corner and got enough power into his header to carry it over the line, even though Hahnemann attempted a goal-line block.
The effort secured victory and the hosts knew it, which probably explained the sense of lethargy that gripped them at the start of the second period.
Vidic's departure was the most notable aspect of that period. The defender did raise his hands to say he was willing to continue after originally indicating a desire to come off and Ferguson will be hopeful of having him fit for Saturday's testing trip to Fulham.
Berbatov brilliance
It did not matter on this occasion, though, and the scene was set for a brilliant piece of skill from Berbatov.
Such a maddeningly laid-back figure, the Bulgarian first collected Paul Scholes' lofted pass before delivering a brilliant overhead kick into the path of Valencia, who drove a first-time shot into the roof of the net.
The 15 minutes Ferguson afforded Michael Owen as replacement for Rooney was presumably not what England boss Fabio Capello had in mind when he said he wanted the striker to play more often.
But, then again, this was not what United away was meant to mean for Wolves when the fixture list came out, either.
McCarthy will only know whether his grand plan has worked on a professional level at the end of the weekend.
Many disgruntled Wolves fans making that late-night trip back down the M6 might not be quite so easily convinced.
| Manchester United |
Team Statistics |
Wolverhampton Wanderers |
| 3 |
Goals |
0 |
| 2 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 10 |
Shots on Target |
0 |
| 5 |
Shots off Target |
3 |
| 3 |
Blocked Shots |
2 |
| 9 |
Corners |
3 |
| 11 |
Fouls |
14 |
| 0 |
Offsides |
1 |
| 1 |
Yellow Cards |
1 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 83.6 |
Passing Success |
76.7 |
| 12 |
Tackles |
13 |
| 66.7 |
Tackles Success |
69.2 |
| 60 |
Possession |
40 |
| 54.2 |
Territorial Advantage |
45.8 |
|
