Manchester United secured their first Premier League win of the season with a majestic performance as they outclassed a toilsome Portsmouth side to win 1-0 at Fratton Park.
The goal came just after the half hour mark. Slick one touch passing found Carlos Tevez with time and space to pick out the marauding Patrice Evra in behind a hopelessly exposed Papa Bouba Diop; late arrival to the box Darren Fletcher met Evra’s centre with an impish flick that took a nick off Portsmouth defender Sol Campbell and evaded the despairing dive of David James.
The game had started at a frenetic pace, and Portsmouth had the first effort only 15 seconds and four passes in. Latching onto a loose clearance from Nemanja Vidic, Senegalese international Diop unleashed a first time volley that had Van der Sar beaten as it went agonisingly wide.
Portsmouth’s early pressure forced United into action, and they responded as expected with a flurry of passes and chances with Rooney, Scholes and Tevez all coming close.
Rooney’s effort came after good work down the right flank from Wes Brown, his drilled centre evaded Sylvain Distin and Sol Campbell before arriving at the feet of Rooney, who took a touch, steadied himself but struck straight at England colleague David James.
James then saved a Paul Scholes free-kick, before seeing Sol Campbell take the ball off the shoe laces of Carlos Tevez after a good ball from Rooney on the left.
United’s dominance was punctuated by the occasional Portsmouth sight of goal, the most notable of the first half falling to Peter Crouch. He linked well with Defoe and may have scored had it not been for Patrice Evra’s timely intervention that Edwin Van der Sar then turned around the post for a corner.
Soon United were back in the ascendancy. They toyed with Portsmouth’s back line and when the deflected Fletcher strike came it was of little surprise.
The game entered a bit of a lull as the match moved towards half-time with errant passes and fouls aplenty from both sides. Yet there was still time for another Pompey chance as Campbell rose well only to head a Lassana Diarra corner wide.
Portsmouth entered the field for the second half determined not to be on the end of a club record sixth successive Premiership defeat, and as with the first half it was they who had the first effort - Crouch heading down a long throw for Sean Davis to fizz a shot wide.
As in the first half United came back stronger, and Rooney thought he had put his side two up after 49 minutes only to see the assistant referee wrongly rule it out for offside.
Portsmouth toiled long and hard but for scant reward, the sum total of their second half work being two long-range efforts from Jerome Thomas and Diop, which Van der Sar did well to beat away.
For much of the rest of the half United retained the ball wonderfully well without creating too much but it was enough to secure the three points.
Marcus Foley / Eurosport
