'There have been many attempts to define genius, but at Old Trafford the ability to run on to a volley 25 yards out and send it dipping and swerving into the top corner while you are injured will do. Footage of the astonishing shot that crashed past Shay Given and into the net beneath the Stretford End would have arrived at the Grosvenor House Hotel just in time for Wayne Rooney to receive his award as the PFA Young Player of the Year last night. As a demonstration of a man's art it was a Guernica.
It was, however, more than just a goal. It rescued Manchester United from the acute embarrassment of a third successive Premiership defeat and ended a goal drought the club had not experienced since the darkest days of Sir Alex Ferguson's rule when the Stretford End was festooned with banners demanding his sacking, rather than messages of defiance to potential buyers. Not since Dec 1989 had Manchester United scored only once in six league games.
It was fashioned from nothing. The header by Peter Ramage, a young defender making his first Premiership start and at Old Trafford of all places, was a good strong clearance, but genius is the ability to see an opportunity a fraction before anyone else. Rooney charged into his drive and the irony of it all was that Ferguson, knowing he had suffered a dead leg in the first half, had just ordered his number to be keyed into the fourth official's board prior to substituting him.
If Manchester United are to compete seriously for the European Cup and the Premiership next season it is crucial they have a better goalkeeper than Tim Howard. His aerial battles with Shearer had been embarrassing to the point where he might have conceded a penalty.'