THE SUNDAY TIMES - SAD SAINTS RUN RAGGED BY ROONEY
Landing a killer punch in only the second minute through the inextinguishable Roy Keane, Manchester United, the FA Cup holders, strolled to a victory of almost humiliating dimensions.
This tie could scarcely have had a more traumatic beginning for Southampton. Quinton Fortune took a corner from the left and the ball broke out of the goalmouth, where Keane, just inside the penalty box on the left, struck a ferocious right-footed shot on the turn that flew into the top corner.
United played with just Ruud van Nistelrooy as their spearhead. Somewhat surprisingly, Wayne Rooney was deployed on the left of midfield. He has such talent that he soon showed he could do damage in this role. After five minutes he went past Martin Cranie with almost insulting ease, but his low centre came to nothing. To their credit, Southampton had the morale and the energy to hit back. On eight minutes the Senegal winger, Henri Camara, went from the left flank to the right and set up Anders Svensson, whose shot was blocked at the near post by Tim Howard.
There was a lull in proceedings, until midway through the half, when United nearly scored again. Paul Scholes found Rooney, who shot powerfully — but then we saw why Paul Smith, signed from Brentford, has been preferred to as accomplished a goalkeeper as Antti Niemi. Smith diverted the ball onto the crossbar and Southampton scrambled it away.
United continued to dominate to an almost embarrassing extent. Their movement, authority and calmly effective use of the ball had Southampton constantly on the back foot, and just occasionally putting an attack together with more desperation than danger.
Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo switched wings, but when Rooney went back on the left, he was as threatening as ever, a remarkable compound of skill and sheer power.
THE OBSERVER - COASTAL BREEZE FOR UNITED AS KEANE BLOWS AWAY RESISTANCE
You can see it now: Manchester United and Arsenal meet for some consolation silverware in Cardiff and José Mourinho will pop up and wish them both luck in the 'Loser's Cup'. It may not be the prize they had in mind at the start of this season but, judging by the desire with which they put Southampton to the sword, United will take some persuading that the FA Cup is little more than a glossy veneer to paper over cracks.
This was a highly committed, concentrated, convincing response by United after a couple of unpalatable performances (0-0 at Crystal Palace and 0-1 at AC Milan) extinguished wild ideas about another treble. With critics come to bury United, there was no option but to step back and offer praise.
A breeze from first whistle to last, the men from Old Trafford enjoyed every minute of a zestful attacking performance. Roy Keane smouldered, Paul Scholes buzzed, Wayne Rooney scintillated, Rio Ferdinand commanded and Tim Howard may as well have smoked a fat cigar.
At half-time the PA announcer made optimistic noises about ticket arrangements for a possible replay. But any chance of a comeback was quashed when United eased into a three-goal advantage shortly after the break. Van Nistelrooy's touch required Smith to overstretch himself trying to clear and he only kicked the ball to Scholes, who scored clinically.
A blazing flare was thrown from the away section, only just missing goalkeeper Smith and creating a heated exchange between the two sets of supporters. 'We were hoping to get the game abandoned,' chuckled Redknapp, before adding more seriously: 'It's obviously dangerous and we don't want to see that come into the game.' The offender, seen clearly on the BBC's match footage, may not be too difficult to identify and punish.
Despite the best efforts of the Saints faithful to inspire the most improbable scoreline, summoning up the spirit of a famous past victory by chanting 'We're gonna win 6-3', it was soon 4-0 to United. Van Nistelrooy planted a lobbed cross on to Scholes's head and it was a sign of how comfortable Alex Ferguson's men were by then that they celebrated as if in training.
A double remains wishful thinking, but United are at least back on song to defend the FA Cup. At the end of a depressing week for the Reds, that in itself was a dose of therapy.
THE INDEPENDENT - THE BOY WONDER AT HIS BEST - A GENUINE WATERSHED MOMENT
Last week a head teacher warned that children shouldn't be allowed to watch footballers like Wayne Rooney on television before the 9pm watershed. Last night Rooney offered his own tea-time lesson as to why they should. The 19-year-old was a threat in all the right ways. Not to the moral fabric of today's youth - he appeared barely to utter a single word, never mind an expletive, all evening - but to the morale fabric of Premiership defences. He was, in all ways, a player to aspire to. Never mind foul language. There wasn't even a foul.
"He had the sort of match that some people would dream about having," player-turned-pundit Alan Hansen purred afterwards. Indeed he did. Even when he was injured, hobbling after turning his ankle near the end, he argued to stay on. No Harry Kewell self-substitution here even if that other Harry, the Southampton manager Redknapp, had jokingly beetled over to Sir Alex Ferguson on the touchline urging him to take Rooney off.
It was, in every way, an immaculate performance. Granted this was Southampton and a makeshift Southampton at that. But they were utterly terrorised by Rooney's football, rather than Rooney the petulant man-child who had so provoked the anger of Dr Chris Howard, the complaining head, after his expletive-fuelled displays against Arsenal and Crystal Palace when the f-off-ometer suffered meltdown. Referees, of course, have been told to tighten up on swearing after those incidents. There was never cause for yesterday's official, Howard Webb, to worry. Not once, it appeared, did he even speak to Rooney.
Instead Rooney was at his belligerent, fearless, inventive best and allied this to an unrelenting appetite. Twice in the first half he struck the woodwork. The first time it was with a fierce side-footed shot that goalkeeper Paul Smith pushed up on to the crossbar only for Rooney somehow to head the rebound wide. He could be forgiven that. Then, on half-time, he brilliantly swerved away from a challenge, bore down on goal and curled a shot which Smith diverted on to a post. Uefa has already commissioned analysis into Rooney's shooting, how he decelerates before striking the ball, how he uses space. This match provided more material for the boffins in Nyon.
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH - KEANE STRIKES EARLY AS UNITED STROLL
Just when you thought we might enjoy a sustained break from the bickering of Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, along comes the dear old FA Challenge Cup to raise the prospect of a reunion. The world's oldest competition has an opportunity to renew what has become, to most of us, the world's most wearying rivalry. The draw takes place tomorrow. Perhaps, if Manchester United and Arsenal are kept apart and meet in the final, the trophy could be renamed the Consolation Cup.
This was a stroll for United. Humbled by Milan in midweek, they took their frustrations out on poor Southampton without having to extend themselves. Their only worry was the flare fired on to the pitch from amid their supporters after the third goal. The excellent Roy Keane scored early. Cristiano Ronaldo, just before the interval, and Paul Scholes, just after, made the most of further opportunities afforded by an inept rearguard before Scholes grabbed a late second. All credit for Southampton's avoidance of a more painful score must be handed to Harry Redknapp's goalkeeper, Paul Smith, who performed defiantly.
Ominously for Southampton, who face a fight against relegation, their concluding fixture sees United return here. "If we win every game in all competitions to the end of the season,'' Phil Neville had said after United's departure from the Champions League in Milan, "we won't be far off the Double.'' As an example of straw-clutching, it was classic. Yet one of the marks of a successful club is the ability to recover from disappointment and United began their quest for the Near-Double with the added incentive that Arsenal were lying in wait.
They didn't hang about either, taking the lead after 90 seconds. Quinton Fortune's corner was stopped but not cleared and Keane assumed possession. Why he was allowed to shuffle unhindered through the penalty area in search of a wider angle for a shot was unclear; perhaps the Southampton defence had been lulled into a sense of security by the knowledge that Keane's recent goal against Birmingham had been his first for more than a year. At any rate the United captain took a swing and benefited from a deflection off Peter Crouch that left Smith flat-footed.