Rooney Enjoys Victory

Wayne Rooney feels it has been a weekend to remember for Manchester United as he sets his sights on usurping Arsenal at the top of the Barclays Premier League table.

The Gunners sit five points clear of the Reds after Robin van Persie's first-half header elevated the champions to fifth place in the table. With Chelsea fortunate to grab only a point against West Brom and both Tottenham and Manchester City slipping to surprise defeats, things are looking much rosier for David Moyes' side ahead of the latest international break.

Although there are some tough away fixtures on the horizon, Rooney is convinced United can strive for the summit by the turn of the year.

"It's a great result," he told Sky Sports. "Arsenal are a good team and we knew we had to win today at all costs. I think it was the toughest we have been to play against and to break down. We defended really well and, thankfully, Robin got the goal for us. It was a great effort by everyone.

"We knew we could not afford to lose today and let Arsenal get 11 points ahead of us. With the other results today, we knew a victory would put us right back in there and in a great position.

"It has given us a massive lift and it's a great weekend for us going into the international games. We'll all go off to play for our countries and then come back as we've got a big push then until the New Year. That's our aim - to still be up there and maybe top or in or around there come the New Year and then, hopefully, we can kick on."

United's upcoming fixtures:

24 Nov - Cardiff (A)
27 Nov - Bayer Leverkusen (A)
1 Dec - Tottenham (A)
4 Dec - Everton (H)
7 Dec - Newcastle (H)
10 Dec - Shakhtar Donetsk (H)