Rooney Eyes Goal Rush

Having bagged his first Old Trafford goals from open play since last March, Wayne Rooney was predictably upbeat after United's win over Aston Villa.

The England striker hammered home United's opening goal inside the first minute, then doubled his and Reds' tally on the stroke of half-time, and he is aiming to stay on the goal trail during the nitty-gritty stage of the season.

"I’ve been happy with my play," the striker told MUTV. "Obviously I want to score. As a striker you want to score. I’ve been happy with my play, apart from the Blackpool game – I just couldn’t get in the game – but I’m delighted today to score and hopefully I can go on a good run and help the team win games.

"It was a great start. We’ve done that the last few home games; we’ve scored early and taken it from there, but we knew tonight was going to be a difficult game. Villa passed the ball well at times and it was quite an open game in the second half, but the most important thing was getting three points, which we’re delighted to have done."

United's victory was sealed by a rasping strike from Nemanja Vidic. Although it was only the third goal of the Serbian's United career that hasn't come via a header, Rooney insists the skipper is a dark horse in the finishing stakes.

"It was a great strike by Vida," admitted the striker. "To be honest, he’s a great striker of the ball. Sometimes after training when the forwards are staying behind and doing finishing, every now and again he comes over and does a little bit. He’s got a great strike on him, so it’s a shame he’s not that far up the pitch all the time!"