Fletch Admires Attacking Trio

Manchester United scored four goals in the Barclays Premier League for the first time since the opening day of the 2013/14 campaign as Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata and Javier Hernandez netted to give the Reds a 4-1 comeback win over Aston Villa.

David Moyes’ men went 1-0 down to Ashley Westwood’s free-kick on 13 minutes at Old Trafford on Saturday, but Rooney led the Reds’ riposte – and it was an emphatic one, leading to a repeat of August’s scoreline against Swansea City.

“Wayne has been a talisman for us this season,” Darren Fletcher told MUTV. “He’s been fantastic. He’s a real leader and he’s really starting to show that now in his performances. You could say he has always done that but his consistency levels are really good; he’s a fantastic player and we’re glad he’s staying with us. He’ll go on to achieve more great success.”

Rooney headed home Shinji Kagawa’s cross after 20 minutes and added a second goal from the penalty spot before the break, with Mata getting off the mark with his first goal for the club in the second half.

Fletcher said of the Spaniard: “He’s a fantastic player and is a great lad in the dressing room. He’s come here and settled in at the club; we’re pleased to have him here. He’s been desperate for that goal and he’s glad it’s come now. Hopefully he can kick on and get a few more towards the end of the season.”

Hernandez bagged United’s fourth goal of the afternoon to complete an impressive win, but it was the build-up play of substitute Adnan Januzaj that caught Fletcher’s eye and served as another reminder of the 19-year-old’s talent.

“The fourth goal was a fantastic team move,” added the Scot. “Adnan played a one-two with Fellaini and then it was a great delivery for Chicharito. Adnan can be a great player and he is going to have a big future at this club. People just have to be patient with him.

“He’s had a fantastic season. He’s maybe not played as regularly as he would have liked in recent weeks but he’s showed that he’s hungry and he came on and impressed. That’s all you can do – when you get your chance you go on and impress and give the manager a selection headache for the next game.”

That next game, of course, is against Bayern Munich, but the performances from Rooney, Mata and Januzaj, allied to Kagawa – voted Man of the Match award by fans on the club’s official Twitter account – illustrate Moyes has plenty of attacking options going into the Champions League quarter-final.