Wayne Rooney scored the winner but suffered a hamstring injury in a 1-0 victory over Wigan Athletic that moved Manchester United up to second in the Premier League on Wednesday. The England striker netted after just 54 seconds at Old Trafford but hobbled off soon after scoring and will be sidelined for at least three weeks, manager Alex Ferguson said.
“Unfortunately we lost Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez came on and did fantastically for us then he got injured. It was a test of our character for the last half hour because it was an absolutely brilliant performance by Wigan,” Ferguson told Sky Sports News.
United, who have 44 points and a game in hand, will go top if they beat Bolton Wanderers on Saturday as leaders Liverpool, who have 46, do not play until they host Everton in the Merseyside derby on Monday. Wigan, coached by former United favourite Steve Bruce, remain in seventh place. Shortly before kickoff they rejected a 10 million pounds bid from Tottenham Hotspur for Honduras midfielder Wilson Palacios. “When the big boys start circling and coming and nicking your players, unfortunately if they pay enough they are always going to get their own way,” Bruce said.
CHELSEA WIN
Chelsea went some way to relieving the pressure on coach Luiz Felipe Scolari by coming from behind to beat Southend United 4-1 in an entertaining FA Cup third-round replay on Wednesday. Goals from Michael Ballack, Salomon Kalou, Nicolas Anelka and Frank Lampard gave Chelsea, with only one win in their previous six matches, a deserved win after League One (third division) Southend had taken a shock 16th-minute lead with an Adam Barrett header. The ultimately emphatic nature of the victory was just the boost Brazilian coach Scolari needed after a recent run of unimpressive performances.
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