Boss Thrilled With Wing Kings

Sir Alex was delighted with United's width in the 4-1 defeat of Wolves as Nani and Antonio Valencia produced outstanding individual performances.

The two wingers led the visiting defence a merry dance and their positivity from the outset enabled the champions to dominate and create a host of chances. Nani scored twice himself with Wayne Rooney also back amongst the goals with a double.

After the disappointment in Basel, it was important for the Reds to respond in the right way and the manager had no complaints about his players.

"We were pleased with that," he told MUTV. "On Wednesday, we worked our socks off and didn’t get a break. Today we worked our socks off and we did get a break. Some of the football was fantastic and obviously getting the second goal relaxed everyone. I know Wolves scored just after half-time but they deserved that because they keep crossing the ball into the box and they’re a real threat from those crosses.

"I thought the wide positions were a problem for Wolves today. I think we kept their full-backs completely occupied all through the game – we were getting to the edge of their box all the time. Goals are what we’re about. Although our goal tally was very good up until a few weeks ago, today was a fillip in terms of pushing us on a bit. The crowd got right behind the players today, particularly the young ones and that was good.

"In the main, our attacking play was terrific. We could have scored a lot of goals today and that’s pleasing. They were all disappointed after Wednesday. The young players hadn’t experienced a bad defeat before so it was a good thing for them."

Sir Alex will be keeping an eye on City's game on Monday against Chelsea as the gap at the top is down to two points.

"We always hope that [we put pressure on City]," he added. "But I think the important thing is to get our own game right. If we get to New Year’s Day and we’re in the frame we have a great chance in the second half of the season."