Rooney Hat-Trick Sinks Pompey

It's never an easy match when you're away to Portsmouth, but we made it look easy on Saturday! United kicked off with a modified squad, that featured five midfielders instead of four and only one striker: Wayne Rooney. The changes seemed effective immediately from the beginning of the game, as Manchester's midfield controlled the tempo of the match. With 60% of the total possession for the match, anyone watching could tell who had the upper hand. Pinpoint passes from the likes of Carrick and Scholes found Rooney in the box again and again. It was only a matter of time before the lad finished one off. In the 25th minute, Rooney received the ball and looked likely to score when he was brought down by a dirty tackle from a Portsmouth player. The ref wasted no time blowing his whistle and pointing to the spot.

Rooney slotted the ball right into the lower left corner of the net, and Begovic, Pompey's keeper, had no chance. 0-1 United. Only 7 minutes later, Portsmouth became more aggressive and managed to get the ball into United's penalty area. Boateng fell down on his own accord, and when the referee awarded him a penalty, most watching couldn't figure out what United had done wrong. A call's a call, though, and Boateng stepped up and took his penalty well. 1-1.

At the beginning of the second half, a fantastic pass from Ryan Giggs found Rooney who made no mistake in finding the net with his first touch. 1-2 United.

A frustrated Portsmouth began fouling United players left and right. With their inability to control the play came the apparent realization that playing cleanly could not work. In the 54th minute, when Rooney was fouled in the penalty area again, nobody was surprised. Rooney settled himself and scored his second penalty and third goal of the match. HAT TRICK! 1-3 United.

At this point, the match was mostly over. It takes a determined and talented team to come back from a two goal deficit. Pompey is certainly capable of it as a team, but they weren't on Saturday. The only event worth noting for the rest of the match took place in the 87th minute. Anderson was fouled outside of the box and United was awarded a free kick. Ryan Giggs stepped back from the ball, got ready, and struck the ball brilliantly to score United's fourth goal of the match and his 100th goal as a Manchester United player! Congratulations Ryan Giggs! You're a true legend. 1-4 United

Ryan's 100th Goal in a Red Shirt