United's swift rise to the top is pleasant surprise for Ferguson

United's swift rise to the top is pleasant surprise for Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted that he is surprised by the speed with which his side have asserted a dominant position at the top of the Premier League. United returned from the Club World Cup in Japan seven points behind Liverpool and the recovery time which some thought Ferguson's squad would need gave succour to Luiz Felipe Scolari and Rafael Benitez.


In the month since, United have established a two-point lead with a game in hand. "I didn't think we would be top so quickly because we had a recovery mission after Japan," Ferguson said. The United manager considers the first game back, a win at Stoke City on Boxing Day, to have been psychologically significant.

There was a minor setback last night after Nemanja Vidic was banned for the first leg of their Champions League tie against Internazionale at San Siro for his sending off in the Club World Cup final against LDU Quito. United will not appeal, though Inter coach, Jose Mourinho, who had demanded a two-game ban for Vidic, may rue the fact that Takahiro Futagawa, of Gamba Osaka, sent off for a lesser offence in the third-place play-off, received precisely that.

It was a benign Ferguson who was surveying those trailing in his wake yesterday. With United having surpassed Chelsea's four-year-old record of 11 consecutive clean sheets, a defence without Vidic does not appear to be a concern and the 5-0 win at The Hawthorns on Tuesday suggests that the side's struggle to score may be in the past, too. Ferguson was hopeful that the knock Vidic suffered in training on Thursday will not prevent him facing Everton at Old Trafford today.

Ferguson was guarded about title talk, but he does dare contemplate each of Dimitar Berbatov, Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and even Carlos Tevez scoring 20 goals this season. "I don't know whether I said I expected them each to get 20 [at the start of the season] but I certainly said they were capable of doing it."

Berbatov, in particular, has come to prominence since United returned from Japan, his four goals in the last five games include late winners against Bolton Wanderers and Middlesbrough. "The most important aspect is that the other players are understanding him," Ferguson said.

Confirmation that Patrice Evra and Nani have returned to training, and that Rooney will do so on Monday after a hamstring injury, highlights the depth of the squad. All three should be available for the match at West Ham United on 8 February, while Rooney may make England's friendly with Spain in Seville on three days later.