Fergie salutes ruthless Reds

MANCHESTER United boss Sir Alex Ferguson hailed goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar and his defence after they set a double Barclays Premier League record during the 5–0 demolition of West Brom at the Hawthorns last night.

Van der Sar surpassed Petr Cech’s record of 1,025 minutes without conceding a goal for Chelsea during the 2004–2005 campaign.

And the Red Devils also set a record of 11 successive clean sheets, overtaking the tally set by the Blues during the same season four years ago.

Ferguson said: “The defensive record is a fantastic performance and it is down to the experience we have gathered together in the back four. Even though we’ve had to make changes in the last few weeks because of injuries, they have all applied themselves very well.

“Edwin Van der Sar, who has achieved everything in the game, is as delighted as when he saved that penalty kick in Moscow during the Champions League final.

“He was over the moon in the dressing room and that tells you his desire. He has still got that ambitious streak and wants to win all the time.”

Ferguson was also pleased that his star studded attack delivered goal–power with Cristiano Ronaldo (65mins and 73), Dimitar Berbatov (22) and Carlos Tevez (44) among the scorers, along with Nemanja Vidic (60) as they moved three points clear of Liverpool at the top of the table.

A patched-up Albion team’s cause was not helped when defender Paul Robinson was sent off after 40 minutes for a challenge on Ji–sung Park, but United were in imperious form.