Rio Ferdinand lavished praise on Wayne Rooney after his goal secured a 1-0 victory for Man Utd at Chelsea.
Ferdinand concedes United were lucky with penalty
Rio Ferdinand lavished praise on Wayne Rooney after his goal secured a 1-0 victory for Manchester United against Chelsea on Wednesday night.
Rooney latched onto a low Ryan Giggs cross to score a crucial away goal in the first leg of an all-English UEFA Champions League quarter-final.
The striker also impressed with his overall performance and Ferdinand believes he has rediscovered his best form following a largely frustrating campaign.
Asked to describe his team-mate, Ferdinand told
Sky Sports: "Quality. He is back to top form now.
"Everything he did today was consistent. He brought other people into the game and then he got his chance and put it into the back of the net."
Chelsea felt they should have been awarded a penalty in the closing stages when Ramires went down under a challenge from Patrice Evra.
Ferdinand conceded that United might have been fortunate with that decision, but pointed out that big decisions had not always gone in United's favour at Stamford Bridge in recent times.
Swings and roundabouts
He said: "The Ramires one looked like it could have been a penalty but over the years I think they have rode their luck against us a few times and had a few big decisions, so it is swings and roundabouts and it all evens itself out over the course of a couple of seasons.
"But we had a good strong ref today and that was good for us."
Ferdinand was thrilled to emerge with a slender lead to take back to Old Trafford next week, paying tribute to a spirited display from all the players.
"It's great. You have to set your stall out to make sure you defend well and then when you get your opportunities you take them, and today we've done that," he explained.
"Today we had people putting their bodies on the line to keep a clean sheet."
