Manchester United's hotshots dished out a resounding 4-0 win over West Brom in a second-half flurry.
Rooney again the star as United run riot in the second half
Manchester United's hotshots gave West Bromwich Albion a tantalising glimpse of hope - before dishing out a resounding 4-0 win in a late second-half flurry.
Goals from United A-listers Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov, Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani pushed them into the top four, leaving West Brom in tenth.
But it was a struggle until man-of-the-match Rooney broke the Baggies' resistance by scoring in his fifth successive game, a run that has yielded six goals for club and country and has now moved United into the top four.
West Brom had every reason to be fearful and it appeared those worries were proved valid when the England striker tucked home midway through the opening period.
On first viewing, Rooney appeared merely to use his strength to push Gianni Zuiverloon to one side as he skipped onto Ronaldo's through ball.
He then stepped inside Ryan Donk before beating Scott Carson from ten yards.
Television replays did not cast that much doubt on Rooney's challenge either but referee Mark Halsey thought otherwise and disallowed the goal for a push.
Frustrating start
It was the most notable moment of a frustrating first half for the hosts, who dominated possession but failed to break a stoic West Brom defence in which Donk and central defensive partner Jonas Olsson were superb.
The general zip that had been missing from United's play in the first half did not instantly reappear after the break.
There were still moments of excellence as Rooney warmed Carson's fingers from 25 yards and Berbatov brought another decent save from West Brom's sure-footed goalkeeper.
But United needed something special, and Rooney, once again, dutifully stepped up to the mark.
Class act
There was still plenty of work to do when Berbatov slipped a pass to his right. But Rooney darted into the box before stepping inside Donk onto his favoured right foot, with which he beat Carson at his near post.
The introduction of Gary Neville for Rafael da Silva shortly afterwards must have given Mowbray and the rest of the visiting hoardes a glimmer of hope.
But within five minutes, United had scored twice more.
First, Rooney turned provider to send Ronaldo flying through. Then substitute Nani saw his low cross bounce through the penalty area to Berbatov who calmly leant back and smashed his first Premier League goal for United - and his first of any kind at Old Trafford - past the helpless Carson.
Giggs tried to get his own name on the scoresheet and Rooney went close again before his unselfish streak allowed him to claim another assist as he rolled an inviting pass across goal to Nani.
Then fortunately for West Brom, the final whistle went to spare them any more.
| Manchester United |
Team Statistics |
West Bromwich Albion |
| 4 |
Goals |
0 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 9 |
Shots on Target |
2 |
| 7 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 7 |
Blocked Shots |
0 |
| 16 |
Corners |
1 |
| 11 |
Fouls |
14 |
| 4 |
Offsides |
2 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
1 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 85 |
Passing Success |
79.7 |
| 12 |
Tackles |
26 |
| 83.3 |
Tackles Success |
69.2 |
| 56.6 |
Possession |
43.4 |
| 61.8 |
Territorial Advantage |
38.2 |
|
