Devils Rule Britannia

It probably won't be remembered as a classic, but United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was more than happy with the way his players navigated Saturday's tricky trip to Stoke.

Goals from Dimitar Berbatov and John O'Shea clinched a 2-0 win and sent United to the top of the table, but the Reds were made to work hard for the points by a stubborn Stoke side.

"The Britannia's a difficult place to come," Sir Alex told MUTV. "No one gets it easy here – Stoke's home record tells you that. We saw a really good performance by Manchester United.

"I think we played very well and showed plenty of composure throughout the game."

The Reds enjoyed almost 70 per cent of the possession but struggled to create clear-cut chances against Stoke's determined defence.

"We didn't quite have the penetration to round off our possession," the manager admitted. "Antonio Valencia had a great chance in the first half, but he just clipped it past the post.

"We had a lot of the ball, created maybe one or two near things, but nothing concrete in terms of a real chance. The goalkeeper made a couple of saves from Nani, but other than that it was a case of having possession of the ball but not creating enough chances.

"In the second half we were much better. It was a good day for us."

The Reds are next in action on Wednesday night in the Champions League before returning to domestic action next Saturday when Sunderland visit Old Trafford.