United Pair Scoop Prizes

Sir Alex Ferguson and Dimitar Berbatov have been named manager and player of the month for January.

The pair enjoyed a productive new year, helping Manchester United to cement their standing at the Premier League summit.

The Red Devils won four and drew one of their five fixtures in January to extend their unbeaten start in the league to 23 games.

United are renowned for their ability to move through the gears at the turn of the year and they could not have wished for a better start to 2011.

With 13 points taken from a possible 15, they now find themselves in a commanding position at the front of the top flight title race.

Their efforts have been given the recognition they deserve by the Premier League, with Ferguson and Berbatov selected as the star performers in January.

Ferguson is no stranger to monthly gongs, with his latest prize the 25th time he has been named the Premier League's top boss.

He is honoured on this occasion after United saw off Stoke and Birmingham on home soil, West Brom and Blackpool on the road and picked up a hard-fought point away at Tottenham.

That run was inspired in part by Berbatov, with the Bulgarian further underlining his claims to the Premier League golden boot.

He was on target five times in January, taking his tally for the season to 19.

The mercurial frontman struck a stunning hat-trick as United eased past Birmingham, before notching twice in a remarkable come-from-behind success at Blackpool.

Berbatov takes the Premier League player of the month award for the first time as a United player, and the second time in his career having previously shared the honour with former Tottenham team-mate Robbie Keane in April 2007.