Young Targets Home Run

Having successfully navigated a treacherous run of away fixtures, Ashley Young feels United's home form will now prove key in the Barclays Premier League title race.

Old Trafford's first domestic game in a month yielded a key victory over West Bromwich Albion and, on the day the Reds moved to the top of the table, Young wants the Reds to press home their advantage over the coming weeks.

"I think we said if we came through the tough away fixtures then we set ourselves up for the rest of the season," Young told MUTV. "We've managed to do that away from home and our home form is key now.

"A lot of people might not have said that we'd be in front of City, but we've got that belief that, as long as we're winning our games, the pressure's on them."

Young continued his fine recent form with another eye-catching display down the United left, and drew praise from Sir Alex Ferguson for his key shift.

“I think he has come back to his form," said the United boss. "He has been out two months and it takes time to get your rhythm back. For the Ajax game, that was missing but I thought he did well for us on Thursday and he was excellent today."

When fronted with the suggestion that he had enjoyed one of his best outings since his summer move from Aston Villa, Young merely shifted the focus back to United's collective fortunes.

"I really enjoyed myself," he said. "I'm not too sure whether it was my best but I'm pleased with my peformance and more importantly getting the three points is what we set out to do.

"I think we knew it was going to be tough and that they were going to get men behind the ball, but we had to break them down and I think as soon as we got the first goal we knew we were going to go on and get more. We created a lot of opportunities today - some we didn't take but we're just delighted to get the three points."