Sir Alex Ferguson’s men were not at their best and, on another day, could have left Hull with another poor result. However, superior finishing ultimately told with Rooney’s brace crucial. 

The England frontman broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time. Rooney turned the ball home from close-range after Ryan Giggs had flicked on a Darren Fletcher cross. 

The goal came at in the dying seconds of an end-to-end half. Hull will certainly have felt aggrieved to be behind at the break. The hosts had seen a penalty appeal turned down after Nemanja Vidic brought down Richard Garcia, whilst Seyi Olofinjana and Stephen Hunt both missed decent opportunities. 

Despite Hull’s determined performance, there was a sense that Rooney’s 45^th-minute goal would sink their challenge. However, the Tigers continued to match the Champions and drew level from the spot after an hour. 

Rooney's woeful back-pass was intercepted by Craig Fagan, and Rafael was forced to drag down Jozy Altidore from the cross which followed. Craig Fagan made no mistake from the spot. 

With the wounds from United's 3-0 defeat at Hull still evident, the hosts suddenly sensed another goal and poured forward. However, United showed more class and ultimately snatched the win thanks to two fine attacking moves. 

On 73 minutes, Giggs unleashed Rooney with a fine pass. The forward then cut inside and directed a dangerous cross into the box which a scrambling Andy Dawson could only guideinto his own net. 

Hull were deflated and a third looked likely. The points were all but secured with eight minutes left as some fine work from Rooney allowed Berbatov to dispatch a cool finish from only yards out. 

Festive cheer for the travelling Red Army! 

Full Time – Hull City 1-3 Manchester United
Attendance – 24,627

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