United cruise at Sunderland

The gulf between the top and bottom was never more so apparent than at Sunderland as Man United won 4-0.

So easy for the champions as Sir Alex takes his side top

The gulf between the top and bottom of the Premier League was never more so apparent than at the Stadium of Light as Manchester United cruised to a 4-0 win over Sunderland. Sir Alex Ferguson's side barely had to get out of second gear as they cut apart a Sunderland outfit that had none of the snarling appetite for the battle that their manager Roy Keane encapsulated in his own playing days. It may be the season of giving but Sunderland took the Christmas message that bit too far as they gifted United victory with the type of performance that had the distinct whiff of relegation fodder. Sunderland had started brightly enough in the opening sparring but from the moment Wes Brown's 20th minute pass dissected a hole in the home side's defence that would have accommodated a double-decker bus, and Rooney slotted past Craig Gordon, nothing would halt United's canter to the division's summit. As the home side went in pursuit of a leveller United picked them off at will on the counter-attack and it was from one such decisive break that they added a second, as Louis Saha stole in front of his dozing marker to prod in from close range Rooney's left wing cross. Keane's woes as he contemplated his half-time words of wisdom were exacerbated when just before the break Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 17th of an immaculate season, with a stunning dipping free-kick that gave Gordon not a prayer. The second half resembled a practice match and as a despairing home crowd began to filter out of the exits, Saha's 86th minute penalty, after Danny Collins had felled Nani, brought down the curtain on an afternoon they will be eager to forget. Keane knows the bulk of his side's points this season will not be taken from the likes of United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool, but from the sides in the battle for top-flight survival. However, having seen them compete creditably in narrow defeats at both Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium already, that was the very least he expected at the Stadium of Light. What he got in the opening 45 minutes was graft and commitment, but what his players lack was abundantly clear as United took them apart so comprehensively that damage limitation was the only thing on the minds of the bulk of a Boxing Day crowd of 47,360.

Peppered

Where Tomasz Kuszczak had only one save to make in the first half when he tipped over Ross Wallace's 40th-minute drive, opposite number Gordon was peppered throughout. Had he not pulled off fine saves from two Ronaldo free-kicks and a Wes Brown header, United could have been six goals to the good by half-time. As it was, they were 3-0 up courtesy of some scintillating passing and movement, as well as top-class finishing. Rooney set the ball rolling on 20 minutes when, after full-back Brown had played a one-two with Ronaldo, he slid the striker in to fire nonchalantly past Gordon. Rooney turned provider 10 minutes later, accepting Ronaldo's pass from the United half before cutting inside Wallace to pick out Saha at the near post. But it was the Portugal international who set the seal on a blistering start when he smashed home an injury-time free-kick with Gordon rooted to the spot. There was a brief glimmer of hope for the home side when Michael Chopra's enterprising run set up Dickson Etuhu to shoot on 51 minutes, but he skied his effort harmlessly over. Former United defender Paul McShane denied Rooney a second with a 54th-minute block, but Kuszczak had to dive low to his right to keep out Kenwyne Jones' 56th-minute striker.

Cruise control

Ronaldo departed to warm applause from both sets of supporters a minute later with his job done as Park Ji-sung was handed his first taste of first-team action since undergoing knee surgery in March. The home side rallied as the clock ran down, but with the visitors in cruise control, genuine openings were few and far between. Chopra saw a 75th-minute shot beaten away by Kuszczak, but it came either side of another Gordon save from Rooney and an uncharacteristically wild close-range volley from the United man. There was, however more to come, and when Nani went down under Collins' challenge, referee Uriah Rennie pointed to the spot and Saha obliged.

Sunderland	Team Statistics	Manchester United
0	Goals	4
0	1st Half Goals	3
2	Shots on Target	10
8	Shots off Target	7
2	Blocked Shots	2
4	Corners	3
15	Fouls	12
0	Offsides	4
2	Yellow Cards	1
0	Red Cards	0
78.1	Passing Success	80.8
31	Tackles	29
54.8	Tackles Success	93.1
41	Possession	59
55	Territorial Advantage	45