our "noisy neighbour" not so noisy afterall eh?? lol

if we become champions again, he will have to cut his *toooot* off... he better start praying hard...

Ferguson said: "He's an exceptional player. A rarity. He will play for two years yet. Happy Birthday. He's had it 36 times in his life, wait until he gets to 67. I think he'll be retired by then.''

anyone notice valencia so damn fast tonite? mcm lipas kudung..lol

so far valencia only looks good against lower team, but not when he played against top team.
he need to play more confidence to give more impact to MU goal effort.

Thats what ppl used to say about Ronaldo.

As long as he keeps performing against lower team thats good enuff. We won the premiership because our constant performance and not just against the big 4 like some posters claimed

Do they still harping on that 4-1 win at OT?

As he savoured his third United hat-trick and moved into double figures for the season, Wayne Rooney admitted that he is hopeful of setting a new personal best goals tally this term.

The firebrand England international has consistently scored around 20 goals per season, with his most prolific campaign coming in 2006/07, when he reached 23 in all competitions. With 11 already this term, he is hopful of surpassing that.

"Of course, taking penalties, my tally should be a lot higher," Rooney told MUTV. "Thankfully I've scored two of them today. It's a great feeling to score a hat-trick, an amazing feeling."

Rooney's first penalty at Fratton Park came in a hotly-contested first 45 minutes in which Portsmouth enjoyed the better openings, and the striker conceded that United were made to work for the points.

"It was quite difficult in the first half. The manager was disappointed we didn't move the ball round as well as we can, and we didn't create that many clear cut chances," he said.

"We had to try and work on that in the second half, and we got the goals and could ease off. But overall it was a difficult game and we're really pleased with the three points."

Ryan Giggs felt United benefited from a second half downpour as the Reds crushed Portsmouth 4-1 at Fratton Park.

After enduring a tricky first 45 minutes against Avram Grant's side, United hammered in three second half strikes in a much-improved display, and Giggs felt that the Reds’ slick passing game mirrored the saturated south coast turf.

Speaking to MUTV, Giggs said: “The rain helped. It made the pitch a lot quicker and we were much slicker with our passing. Just after half time we created chances, and soon after that Wayne managed to score. It was the perfect start.

“After that the goals came at good times, two quick goals and then we were able to be more confident on the ball.”

United’s control of the second half came after a tricky first period in which the hosts put the Reds’ defence under considerable pressure, forcing Tomasz Kuszczak to be called into action on various occasions.

“It got a lot easier in the second half,” said Giggs. “In the first half they made it difficult for us. As well as the two penalties the game was stopping and starting a lot. In the second half we started very well, created chances and managed to get the goals.”

The veteran winger was especially pleased with the result because, as is the case most weeks, United’s opposition raised their game to make things as hard as possible for the Reds.

"We were warned by the manager before the game that every home came they’ve played they could have won," he said. "They’ve got quality going forward and experience throughout the team so we knew it was going to be a tough game. When we come here, like anywhere, it’s their cup final so they up their performance.”

Finally, Ryan reserved special praise for Wayne Rooney, who netted his third United hat-trick.

"He was brilliant, he was up there on his own. He tied down the two centre-halves and was brilliant all game. He took his goals well and he could have had more but his overall performance was good."

Sir Alex Ferguson praised his side’s discipline and composure after the Reds secured a convincing 4-1 victory at Portsmouth to move within two points of Chelsea.

The United boss watched from the stands as a Wayne Rooney hat-trick and Ryan Giggs’ 100th Premier League goal ensured the Reds remain hot on the heels of Carlo Ancelotti's pace-setters.

The Reds survived a rocky first period before storming to victory after the break, and Sir Alex was pleased with the way his team remained calm before deservedly taking all three points.

“It’s a great result for us, 4-1 away from home, I was very pleased with that,” he told MUTV. “Some of the football was good, and in the second half we kept our discipline very well, we kept possession of the ball very well and we deserved it in the end.”

The Reds' emphatic victory negated a potentially lively debate about the award of Portsmouth's penalty, given for a slight shirt tug by Nemanja Vidic and subsequently converted by Kevin-Prince Boateng. Nevertheless, Sir Alex was satisfied by the manner in which his side overcame that setback.

“I think the linesman put the referee under terrible pressure, and he was fifty yards away," he said. "You see these things every week in the box. Players wrestle with one another, tug at each other’s jerseys but that’s never a penalty kick. This linesman has changed the course of normal decision making. It was disappointing for us to concede in that kind of situation.

“Half time came at a good time for us. The important thing was to keep our discipline, keep our composure and play our football. An early goal was always important in the second half because they had to chase and things can open up for you, and that’s exactly what happened."

Sir Alex also singled out Tomasz Kuszczak for special praise, after the Polish goalkeeper, starting in goal due to the absence of Edwin Van Der Sar, saved United a number of times in the first half.

"In fairness to them, Portsmouth made some good chances," said the United manager. "Tomasz has made three fantastic saves today so we owe him a debt because his performance was top notch, we’re pleased with him."

Sir Alex Ferguson saluted the evergreen Ryan Giggs after he netted his 100th Premier League goal in Manchester United's 4-1 win over Portsmouth.

Giggs curled home United's fourth with a trademark free-kick in the closing moments to set the seal on victory on the eve of his 36th birthday.

Wayne Rooney had earlier hit a hat-trick for the Red Devils, including two from the penalty spot, as the champions made light of Ferguson's absence from the dugout as the Scot started his two-game touchline ban.

Ferguson said: "He's an exceptional player, a rarity. He will play for two years yet.

"Happy Birthday. He's had it 36 times in his life, wait until he gets to 67. I think he'll be retired by then."

Ferguson was unimpressed by the penalty decision which saw Pompey level before the break, although replays showed Nemanja Vidic was pulling Frederic Piquionne's shirt.

Pressure

"The linesman has put the referee under terrible pressure and he has to listen to the linesman who is 50 yards away," he said.

"You see these things every weekend in the penalty box. If you are saying everyone who wrestles at a corner or tugs at a jersey concedes a penalty kick then that's fine. But it doesn't happen that way and this linesman has changed the whole course of normal decision making.

"So it was a very disappointing result for us to get a penalty against us in that situation. Half-time came at a good time for us and the important thing was to keep our discipline and composure and play our football."

Rooney earned the first penalty, then Giggs set up his second from open play and won the penalty for the England striker's hat-trick after a blunder from Piquionne.

"With strikers you always want them to score, he's got the matchball which is nice," Ferguson said.

Thats what ppl used to say about Ronaldo.

As long as he keeps performing against lower team thats good enuff. We won the premiership because our constant performance and not just against the big 4 like some posters claimed

Do they still harping on that 4-1 win at OT?

win against mid & lower team is good but that not good enough.
still need to win against top team to secure the top place.
better to give hope from own team rather than hoping for other team faith

not really. look at what happened to pool last season

haiya ... pool is different ... can win over top team but spoiled against mid team

& u can't hope the same thing will happen every year

haiya ... pool is different ... can win over top team but spoiled against mid team

& u can't hope the same thing will happen every year

haiya ... pool is different ... can win over top team but spoiled against mid team

& u can't hope the same thing will happen every year

my 2 cents for last nights game against pompey.

Valencia:
looking much more confident in every game that he plays. i think he's starting to blend in and playing more like a man utd player. he's quick and i realised that his decision making now is more instinctive compared to when he first came which took him like a few secs for him to process his decisions, and make him look so 1 legged. good job valencia, hope you can improve further.

PIG:
still can't spell this buggers name right but he really put up top class saves tonight. i really pity him sometimes that SAF doesn't give him much chances but he really took it well tonight. showed us why he is still in contention for the number 1 spot after VDS. definitely the MOTM for us.