United show Wolves the door

SOCCER/FA Cup/Wolves 0-3 Manchester United: Manchester United's formation might have surprised though the outcome here did not.

Having chosen to field Rio Ferdinand in central midfield alongside Wayne Rooney, Alex Ferguson again appeared to be using the FA Cup as an opportunity to experiment though this time, unlike their labouring performance against Burton Albion in the previous round, the results were only positive.

Two well-taken goals from Kieran Richardson and another from Louis Saha smoothed United's passage into the fifth round and left Wolves nursing their heaviest defeat since Glenn Hoddle took over nearly 14 months ago.

The Wolves manager had hoped that this tie might prove to be a catalyst for the rest of the season, though instead it merely illustrated the chasm between the two clubs.

That gulf appeared wider than the 26 league positions at times as United toyed with their Championship opponents. Indeed but for the width of the crossbar and goalkeeper Stefan Postma smothering at the feet of Rooney the margin of victory would have been greater.

Nobody will have been more disappointed than Paul Ince, anxious to impress against his former side, though for much of this match the former 38-year-old midfielder was forced to chase shadows as United wrested control.

Ferdinand and Rooney might be an unlikely midfield duo though their combination of discipline and exuberance neatly dovetailed. It is a partnership that Ferguson intimated he might persist with against Blackburn Rovers on Wednesday given the continued absence of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and John O'Shea.

"I was forced into it a little because all my best options are defensive," explained the United manager, who was also anxious to give Darren Fletcher and Alan Smith a rest.

"Fletcher has played a lot of games and needed a break, while Alan Smith has been missing training with an ankle problem and I felt it was a big ask to throw him into a full-blooded FA Cup tie," explained Ferguson.

One of those options was Nemanja Vidic, who was given a debut in central defence by Ferguson. It ought to have been a comfortable introduction to English football given Wolves' lack of potency in attack though the Serbia & Montenegro international was unconvincing.

Clumsy tackles, one of which brought a booking, and rash clearances suggest he will need a period of transition to adapt to the pace of the English game much like Patrice Evra, who started on the substitutes' bench.

Vidic did, though, play a part in United's crucial second goal when a long punt forward allowed Saha to scamper clear. It was not the first time that Wolves had played offside, though with their attentions focused on Van Nistelrooy, the Frenchman sprung from deeper to elude Gabor Gyepes. His finish was cool, quelling any hopes that Wolves had of finding a route back into the match.

"The last minute before half-time you should not let people get behind you," lamented Hoddle. "That's really poor defensive play."

Wolves were not much better as an attacking force. A midfield triumvirate of Ince, Darren Anderton and Mark Kennedy boast more than 1,500 games between them though their experience was negated by Rooney's youthful mind. It can only be imagined that Sven-Goran Eriksson, watching from the stands, was as impressed as Hoddle with the 20-year-old's adaptability. "If you have got talent like Rooney you can play anywhere," said Hoddle. "He's proved that again today."

United had wrestled the initiative as early as the fifth minute. Saha twisted his way past Naylor before firing a right-footed cross into the six-yard box. Joleon Lescott's touch was indecisive, diverting the ball into the path of Richardson, who calmly stroked in from the edge of the area. Postma may have been unsighted though the goalkeeper will have been disappointed to allow the shot to squirm under his body.

It was a lead that United might have added to within three minutes when Richardson exchanged passes with Saha on the left, though the England international selfishly opted to shoot when a cut-back would have served his team-mates better.

One of the few chances Wolves carved in the opening 45 minutes arrived seconds later though Carl Cort's header from Kennedy's cross sailed inches over.

His next opportunity proved to be his last when an inexplicable miss from 12 yards midway through the second half prompted Hoddle to withdraw the former Newcastle forward.

Saha was not nearly as wasteful when he tucked away his seventh goal in 10 games on the stroke of half-time. "He's such a great threat because of his power and pace," said Ferguson, who also praised the Frenchman for his link-up play.

Wolves' approach was anything but as cohesive and not until the introduction of Colin Cameron and Mark Davies at the interval did they find any fluency. Cameron's impact was immediate, stinging the hands of Edwin Van der Sar with a 25-yard drive.

Moments later Tomasz Frankowski, another substitute, came close to marking his debut with a goal when he prodded wide.

United, though, were already three goals to the good by then after Richardson snatched his second. It owed much to the determination of Park Ji-sung who advanced on the right before adroitly cutting the ball back to Van Nistelrooy. The Dutchman's sublime cross implored Richardson to head home. He did not disappoint.- Guardian Service