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Man United 4 - Aston Villa 1: Plane sailing for United as Rooney hits double
WAYNE ROONEY struck twice as Manchester United thrashed Aston Villa 4-1 to secure under pressure manager David Moyes a much needed win.
The build-up to the game had been dominated by protestors' plans to fly a 'Moyes Out' banner over Old Trafford, however it'll be Wayne Rooney who takes the headlines.
Fans inside Old Trafford staged a show of support for Moyes, greeting him with cheers and applause to leave the banner looking fickle and redundant.
Despite the renewed optimism, Moyes' men got off to the worst possible start. A rash challenge from Rafael on Gabby Agbonlahor gave Ashley Westwood the opportunity to score with the resulting free-kick.
The young Englishman curled a sublime free-kick over the wall and into the left hand corner to leave Old Trafford in stunned silence.
They weren't behind for long, just seven minutes in-fact, before future United captain Rooney guided Shinji Kagawa's teasing left-wing cross into the net.
Wayne Rooney grabbed a double for United
Paul Lambert cut a forlorn future on the touchline after seeing his side miss a succession of chances, Christian Benteke most notably skying a good opportunity at the near post.
Villa were punished for their misses when Juan Mata netted his first Manchester United goal, thumping home after some scrappy play in the visitors' six-yard area.
Javier Hernandez rounded off the rout, and consigned Villa to their second successive 4-1 defeat, after converting an Adnan Januzaj cross as time ran out.