Man Utd 4 Hull City 3

Barclays Premier League
Old Trafford, Sat 1 November

Man Utd 4
(Ronaldo 3, 44; Carrick 29, Vidic 57)

HULL CITY 3
(Cousin 23, Mendy 69, Geovanni (pen) 82)


The Tigers roared and roared but the Reds triumphed 4-3 in a pulsating encounter at Old Trafford.

Hull¡¯s fairytale start to the season looked a distant memory when Nemanja Vidic sent United 4-1 up on 57 minutes, but goals from Bernard Mendy and Geovanni made for nervy final moments at the Theatre of Dreams.

Hulls¡¯s fans certainly thought they were in dreamland, as they sung ¡°this is the best trip we¡¯ve ever been on¡±. All good things must end, though, and when referee Mike Dean blew the final whistle it was United celebrating three precious Premier League points.

At his pre-match press conference, Sir Alex said he was confident he could keep Berbatov, Rooney and Tevez all happy. Against Hull, it was Rooney and Berbatov who were charged with leading the line.

Wes Brown was left out after picking up a minor knock on his ankle. Gary Neville occupied the right back berth in what was his 550th United appearance, while Cristiano Ronaldo played his 250th Reds match. Michael Carrick started his first match since mid-September after returning from injury, with Darren Fletcher relegated to the bench.

Edwin van der Sar also returned in goal but he¡¯d barely touched the ball before the Reds went in front. Surprise, surprise, it was that man Ronaldo, with his third of the week. Dimitar Berbatov drilled the ball towards the Portuguese winger, who took one touch with his back to goal before swiveling to hit a sweet half-volley in off the post.

By the manager¡¯s own admission, United took their foot

01/11/2008 17:00, Report by Nick Coppack