THE INDEPENDENT - UNITED ON SONG AFTER ROBSON'S KEY LOSS
A festive spirit of sorts gripped Old Trafford as the penultimate home fixture in a troubled, trophy-less year delivered comfort and joy for Manchester United. Before a Premiership record crowd, only 28 short of 68,000, a terminally unadventurous West Bromwich were swept aside by goals from Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
The turning point was the head injury to Albion's Paul Robinson after 26 minutes in which United were frustrated by a massed defence. The former Watford player, who was man-marking Wayne Rooney to considerable effect, no sooner departed on a stretcher with concussion than Scholes' third goal in six matches fired Sir Alex Ferguson's side in front.
Ferdinand, having gone three and a half years without a goal before scoring against Wigan in the previous home match, repeated the feat before half-time. Van Nistelrooy, a more frequent marksman, rendered the last 25 minutes academic with his 16th goal of the campaign.
Bryan Robson, the Albion manager and former United icon, claimed Rooney had pushed Robinson into the hip of his colleague, Thomas Gaardsoe.
"Rooney has been running games for United and we wanted him out of the game," Robson said. "But as soon as Robinson went off, we switched off."
In time added on for treatment to Robinson, United doubled their advantage. Curtis Davies, who lists Ferdinand among his heroes, was possibly star-struck as Ryan Giggs' corner swung in. His failure to track Ferdinand's run left the defender free to score with a glancing header.
Albion mustered only two efforts on target, both by Ronnie Wallwork, the first in the 55th minute and the second in stoppage time. United were playing well within their capabilities, but Ferguson seemed to feel they had settled too readily for a two-goal advantage and soon introduced Alan Smith to stirring effect. Released down the right by the impressive Park, the former Leeds player's centre was met by a clinical downward header by Van Nistelrooy to bring the carols belatedly cascading from the stands.
THE TIMES - FREAK ACCIDENT RUINS ROBSON'S PLANS
It was a novel idea will it lasted. Having heeded the lesson that others have chosen to ignore to their cost, Bryan Robson, the West Bromwich Albion manager, concluded that it was simply too dangerous to allow Wayne Rooney to roam freely and shackled the young tyro with a man-marker as part of a five-man defensive wall.
It was hardly the Christmas present Paul Robinson would have wanted, but the West Bromwich defender took to the task like a dog with a bone, gnashing at the Manchester United striker’s heels whenever the ball entered his vicinity, and succeeded where countless others have failed by nullifying the threat posed by the country’s brightest young talent.
So effective was he that Rooney was starting to lose interest and Robson entertaining thoughts of an upset on his old stamping ground before disaster struck in the 27th minute. Thomas Gaardsoe headed a harmless cross clear, only for Robinson accidentally to clatter into the back of his team-mate. There were concerned faces as Robinson lay flat out for six minutes while medics tried to wake him, but within two minutes of the defender being carted off on a stretcher with concussion and West Bromwich reverting to a 4-4-2 formation, the visiting team’s stubborn defence was breached and the game was as good as over.
Rio Ferdinand exchanged a one-two with Park Ji Sung before charging between two defenders and squaring for the South Korean, who held off Steve Watson long enough to tee up Paul Scholes. The former England midfield player has rediscovered both his form and scoring touch of late and made no mistake with his shot, firing left-footed across Tomasz Kuszczak for his third goal in six games.
West Bromwich imploded and, seemingly content with respectability, abandoned all hope of a first away win of the season and first victory at Old Trafford for 27 years. Ferdinand added a second in the third minute of stoppage time at the end of the first half and Ruud van Nistelrooy secured a seventh win in eight league games with his sixteenth goal of the season to keep the pressure on Chelsea, who remain nine points clear at the top of the Barclays Premiership. "I thought Paul was getting joy marking Wayne Rooney and doing a job on him and Wayne was getting frustrated before he (Robinson) went off," Robson, who will assess the player today before deciding whether to start him against Tottenham Hotspur tomorrow, said.
THE GUARDIAN - FREE-SCORING FERDINAND CRACKS THE WHIP OF THE CHASE
In ordinary circumstances Manchester United's supporters would look at the number of league points they have accrued this season with equal measures of smugness and satisfaction. Unfortunately for them, these are not ordinary circumstances. Seven wins out of the last eight games is an impressive statistic but all that truly matters is the nine-point gap to Chelsea and any sense of jubilation was tempered by the result two hours earlier from Stamford Bridge. Plus ça change.
Sir Alex Ferguson must find it deeply demoralising that United have accumulated more points at this stage than in five of his eight title-winning seasons. Their domestic form over the last two months is that of prospective champions but as long as Chelsea keep on their relentless path every victory at Old Trafford feels bittersweet. No sooner have the players stopped high-fiving in the centre circle then the realisation dawns that, ultimately, it has not altered anything.
Even a manager as experienced as Ferguson must be confused about whether this sort of routine win should be a cause for celebration or a time for sober reflection. Everyone connected with United must have blurred emotions right now, although Ferguson was certainly entitled to be pleased by the ease with which this win was achieved courtesy of that collectors' item, the Rio Ferdinand goal, sandwiched by efforts from two far more regular scorers, Paul Scholes and Ruud van Nistelrooy.
The only surprise was that Wayne Rooney did not play more of a prominent part in a victory that was every bit as comfortable as the scoreline suggested. Rooney, who received another player-of-the-month award for his bloated collection, flickered only sporadically on a day when others shone brightly, most notably Scholes, Ferdinand and Park Ji-sung. Everyone, in fact, seemed on top of his game with the exception of John O'Shea, whose first-half performance was thoroughly incongruous.
THE TELEGRAPH - UNITED BREAK ALBION'S RESISTANCE
West Bromwich Albion's plan to stifle the life out of Manchester United by man-marking Wayne Rooney worked for the first half-hour. Paul Robinson, the man given the task of shadowing the England striker, was then carried off after an accidental collision with colleague Thomas Gaardsoe and almost immediately United found a way through.
Albion had no Plan B and United, grateful for Paul Scholes' breakthrough, dominated the rest of the game to take their points haul from the last eight matches to 22.
Rio Ferdinand scored his second goal for the club - the belated first had been in the previous home game - and Ruud van Nistelrooy raised his tally for the season to 16 to complete the demolition of opponents whose only attacking contributions were a header and a shot by Ronnie Wallwork, both of which were comfortably gathered by Edwin van der Saar.
The victory strengthens United's position as the most realistic challengers to Chelsea but their efforts over the last month have made little impression on the leaders, who are nine points clear.
Albion manager Bryan Robson focused on the departure of Robinson as the turning point, although it is doubtful whether his team would have held United at bay for another 60 minutes, even with their first-choice selection.
Van Nistelrooy's clincher midway through the second half owed a considerable debt to Alan Smith, whose first contribution from the substitutes' bench was the most inviting of curling crosses, which was ruthlessly dispatched.
That enabled Ferguson to rest Van Nistelrooy in advance of three more holiday fixtures, the manager having already sent Scholes home early to treat a head cold. His other withdrawal, Wes Brown, was enforced because of a "slight groin strain".
Goal difference is unlikely to be a factor in the title race but United should have improved theirs against opponents who are set for another survival battle. Ferguson was in forgiving mood, though. "All we can do is keep winning," he said, "and hope something happens to Chelsea. We want to be the nearest team to them if that is the case."