Man U beats Stoke to go three points clear
Manchester United’s Nani (R) scores against Stoke during their English Premier League match at Old Trafford, Manchester, on Tuesday.SD-Agencies
JAVIER HERNANDEZ and Nani set each other up for goals as Manchester United beat Stoke 2-1 to go three points clear at the top of the Premier League on Tuesday.
The side is three clear of Manchester City, which has played a game more. Arsenal, which hosts City later, is third on 39, with Tottenham Hotspur fourth on 36 and Chelsea fifth on 35.
At the other end of the table there were good wins for Fulham and Birmingham City, which both began the night in the relegation zone.
At Old Trafford, Dimitar Berbatov and Ryan Giggs both missed presentable chances in the early exchanges before United broke through in the 27th minute.
Nani swept in a low cross and Hernandez, who got both goals in the 2-1 win at Stoke in October, cleverly flicked it in from behind his leg.
With Wayne Rooney rested and watching from the stands, Hernandez and Berbatov shouldered the attacking duties but they were not overly-busy as the game meandered peacefully amid a flat atmosphere.
The fans woke up five minutes into the second half though when poor defending left Whitehead free to head home Tuncay’s cross for Stoke’s first Old Trafford goal in 30 years.
United immediately livened up and restored their lead with a superb curling shot by Nani after 62 minutes.
Stoke, beaten 4-0 and 5-0 on their last two visits to Old Trafford, was unable to come back a second time and remains eighth on 27 points.
“It was a difficult type of match. They never give in and make it difficult for every team but we produced some good moments and our own commitment was very good,” Ferguson told Sky Sports. “We made a few changes tonight to keep the squad motivated and also to give them enough game time because January is going to be a big month for us,” said Ferguson, who also rested Rio Ferdinand and Edwin van der Saar.
“You have to have faith and trust in the players and they’ve never let me down.”
Stoke boss Tony Pulis said: “Whatever team they put out they have players who can hurt you and they were always a threat.”(SD-Agencies)
Source:大运官网 | Editer:王佳