Manchester United 3-0 Fulham
Rooney 45°, 84°; Berbatov 89°
United moved back to the top of the Barclays Premier League with a hard-fought victory over Roy Hodgson's Fulham at Old Trafford.
Red-hot striker Wayne Rooney grabbed his 31st and 32nd goals of the season in the second half, turning in a pair of close-range finishes after pinpoint crosses from Nani and Dimitar Berbatov, before the Bulgarian added a deserved third goal late on.
United dominated possession for long periods, but had to put in a sweat-soaked shift to overcome a well-drilled, patient Fulham side who defended in large numbers, attacked with purpose and could have broken the deadlock themselves in the first half.
Clint Dempsey and Bobby Zamora both came close for the Cottagers, but those brief flurries were against the grain in a match dominated for long periods by the champions.
Following his side's tactical triumph against AC Milan, Sir Alex Ferguson and his staff reverted to a more orthodox 4-4-2 set-up for the bread and butter of a Sunday afternoon Premier League clash. Berbatov was restored at the expense of Ji-sung Park, while Michael Carrick returned from suspension to take Paul Scholes' place.
Fulham's sturdy defensive record - one goal conceded in their previous five Premier League games - suggested a tight afternoon, and it took the Reds 11 minutes to fashion any opening of note. Berbatov's superbly-weighted pass released Darren Fletcher, the Scot opted to square for Rooney rather than shoot, and a heroic last-ditch challenge from Stephen Kelly shielded the open goal.
To serve notice of the visitors' threat on the break, however, shortly afterwards Clint Dempsey fired a 30-yard effort fractionally off target after Gary Neville had been dispossessed by Zoltan Gera.
Nani and Berbatov were both heavily involved in United's attacking play throughout the first half, and the pair combined incisively as the winger's cross was glanced just over the crossbar by the Bulgarian. Goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer was helpless then, but he made a fine save to deny Rooney on the half-hour mark, flinging himself to his right to keep out the striker's stinging half-volley.
As the hosts' pressure built, Fulham delivered an almighty scare. Danny Murphy, a perennial pain against the Reds for Fulham and former club Liverpool, clipped a superb ball over for Zamora, and the striker's first-time volley looped mercifully over the bar.
At half-time, Roy Hodgson introduced Damien Duff at the expense of Simon Davies, and the Irish veteran had been in the fray for under 30 seconds when the deadlock was broken by United.
Berbatov flicked a neat header on for Rooney, who slipped a pass left to Nani. The Portuguese winger opted for an immediate return and slotted a perfect pass between a shoal of Fulham bodies and into the path of Rooney, who slotted home his 31st goal of a prolific season.
An almighty scramble followed soon afterwards as Nani and Rooney both attempted to pierce another ruck of bodies in the six yard box, but the visitors escaped with the concession of just a corner. From a later set-piece, Rio Ferdinand came close to doubling the lead from a Valencia corner when his hooked effort clipped the roof of Schwarzer's net.
Ferdinand's central defensive partner, Nemanja Vidic, had to be alert with 20 minutes remaining. Having initially led a harmless ball roll through to release Zamora, the Serbian did superbly to race back and block the striker's goalbound effort.
United responded with a flurry of chances. Berbatov glanced a header just wide from substitute Ji-sung Park's cross and Patrice Evra capped a driving run with a dragged shot, before Schwarzer made a magnificent one-handed save to keep out Fletcher's close-range effort.
The Australian international was powerless to keep United at bay for much longer, however, and he was left exposed as Berbatov displayed wonderful control and skill down the right wing, picked out Rooney and the striker turned home his 32nd goal of the season.
Berbatov's key role in the goal was heralded as the Bulgarian was mobbed by his team-mates. Those celebrations were repeated five minutes later when he stooped to head in Park's right wing cross and add further gloss to the scoreline as Fulham - drained perhaps by their Europa League exploits against Juventus - tired in the late stages.
Devastating in attack and increasingly secure at the back - this was a seventh straight home Premier League clean sheet - United's two-pronged challenge for honours is gathering pace by the week. In top spot with eight games to play, the champions are looking in ominous form.
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