Scunthorpe Utd 2 Manchester Utd 5:THIS WAS an unorthodox win for Manchester United, but only because Alex Ferguson was not there. The manager sent his apologies on a night when his team recovered from going a goal down to make this, ultimately, a demonstration of the gulf that exists between these clubs.
The threat of a giant-killing was only passing and the evening was to feature a reminder from Michael Owen he is still adept in the art of goal-scoring, his two second-half goals turning this match into a romp.
They had trailed to Josh Wright’s 19th-minute strike but the game was quickly turned upside down, Darron Gibson and Chris Smalling scoring before half-time, and the night became an exercise in damage limitation for Scunthorpe after the break, Owen’s goals coming either side of a Park Ji-Sung effort.
Ferguson was at the Estadio Mestalla in Valencia, watching United’s next opponents in the Champions League take on Atletico Madrid, making this only the third first-team match he has missed in nearly 24 years as manager. Mike Phelan, Ferguson’s assistant, was taking charge of a side that did not include a member of the starting XI from the weekend defeat of Liverpool, but it was still a team with nine full internationals, including the England captain Rio Ferdinand. For much of the first 45 minutes the Championship side attacked with a determination to show they would not be fazed by the reputation of their opponents and when Josh Wright lashed a 20-yard shot beyond Tomasz Kuszczak after 19 minutes there was an air of arm-pinching disbelief inside Glanford Park.
Scunthorpe’s lead had lasted barely three minutes when Chris Smalling, with a pass from inside his own half, sent Gibson running behind the home defence. Gibson’s first-time lob beat goalkeeper Joe Murphy from a difficult angle. On 36 minutes Park crossed from the right and Smalling beat Murphy with a close-range volley.
The home side’s hopes were all but extinguished four minutes after the restart. Federico Macheda’s measured pass split the home back-line and from that moment onwards it was vintage Owen, sprinting clear, drawing the goalkeeper and scoring with a clipped finish. Four minutes later, the ball fell invitingly for Park from a poorly defended corner to drive in the fourth goal with a low and powerful shot.
Park created the fifth for Owen, his shot being spilled by Murphy for the striker to prod in the rebound. The game was won and Phelan had the luxury of introducing Bebe, the recent €8.7 million signing from Vitoria de Guimaraes, before Martyn Woolford scored Scunthorpe’s second with a shot through a congested penalty area.
Guardian Service
SCUNTHORPE UTD: Murphy, Byrne, Mirfin, Nolan, Canavan, Togwell (Collins, 72), Woolford, O'Connor (Grant, 61), Dagnall (Godden, 81), Forte. Subs not used: Slocombe, Wright, Jones, Raynes.
MANCHESTER UTD: Kuszczak, Ferdinand, Brown, Smalling, Da Silva Rafael, Anderson, Park ( Bebe, 74), Darron Gibson, Owen, Hernandez (Obertan, 68), Macheda. Subs not used: Van der Sar, O'Shea, De Laet, Corry Evans, Eikrem.
Referee: M Dean(Wirral)
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