Blackburn produced arguably the shock of the season so far by defeating Manchester United 3-2 at Old Trafford in an unexpected set back for the champions.

A Dimitar Berbatov brace wasn’t enough to rescue United as goals from Yakubu and Grant Hanley sealed a famous victory for under pressure manager Steve Kean.

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There’s been good, bad, and ugly for Manchester United in 2011, but United are winding down the calendar year in scintillating form, with five consecutive Premier League wins part of a nine-match unbeaten league run. And if United can extend that run to six straight league wins and ten straight unbeaten with a home win over Blackburn this afternoon, they’ll go into next year on top of the Premier League table, and a certain special legendary manager will get an excellent 70th birthday present.

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Dimitar Berbatov delivered a late Christmas present to United fans, scoring three in a 5-0 demolition of 10-men Wigan, to send Ferguson’s team joint top with Manchester City, albeit behind on goal difference.

Park Ji Sung and Antonio Valencia also got on the scoresheet, as Wigan were furious with referee Phil Dowd, whose decision to send off Conor Sammon virtually sealed Roberto Martinez’ men destiny.

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Many people look forward to Christmas Day, what with all of the presents and the food and the family time. Now, that’s all very, very nice, but I look forward more to the day after Christmas, even if it’s not a holiday in my little corner of the world.

Boxing Day means football, football, football, and for Manchester United, Boxing Day traditionally means success. That should once again be the case today, as in-form United, looking for a fifth straight Premier League win and to extend their unbeaten league run to nine matches, host Wigan Athletic.

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Craven Cottage has been a difficult ground for Manchester United through the years, with only 1 point from 9 during the Reds’ last three visits there. If that is not bad enough, United had conceded 7 goals from those three games, which is painful reading for a team that puts a lot of emphasis on being solid in defence. But Wednesday’s game was a joyful occasion for every red, with United scoring five and keeping only their second clean sheet at the ground since Fulham joined the Premier League in 2001. Welbeck, Nani, Giggs, Rooney and Berbatov all got their name on the scoresheet, making it the second time this season that five different United players have found the net in the same match. The Red Devils now stand only 2 points behind leaders City at Christmas.

What is even more pleasing for United fans is the football on show, with chances and goals arriving at will. What has happened to United? Following 8 games where United managed to find the net only once per game, they have now scored 11 in 3, and it could easily have been more. Why the sudden change?

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Manchester United got the perfect Christmas send off as they brushed Fulham aside after a superb first half performance.

United got off to a flyer against QPR on Sunday, and things weren’t much different in their second visit to West London in four days.
With five minutes played, Nani was allowed to run down the left wing unchallenged and pull the ball back for Welbeck, setting up a simple finish for the youngster.

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After a blazing start to the season, October, November, and part of December saw a lack of five-star performances from Manchester United. Lulls are inevitable in a long and arduous season, especially when you throw a rash of injuries into the equation, but it’s only natural for fans to want to see top-notch performances on a consistent basis and to see those top-notch performances result in wins.

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Losing out on Champions League progression may have been a big blow to United, but as always the Red Devils rise following disappointment. The 2-0 win against QPR saw United play some exhilarating football for the second game running, and saw them score more than one goal away from home for the first time since September. The club’s away record now sees them with 6 wins and 2 draw in 8 games, keeping a clean sheet 5 times. The last time United conceded a Premier League goal away from Old Trafford was at Anfield, when Steven Gerrard managed to find the net from a free kick given against United following a Charlie Adam dive. The defensive performances away from home have been spot on so far, but Sunday’s game should be remembered for the attack. Had United been more clinical it could easily have been 6 or 7 nil, but 2 was more than enough to earn them a win at Loftus Road. Following a great attacking performance against Wolves, United now seem to have found their momentum going forward after a long period with 1-0 wins.

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Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick got on the score sheet as Manchester United delivered a great performance to seal a comfortable 2-0 win at QPR.

United were superior in every department and could have easily had five or six, such was the gulf in quality between Fergie’s men and the West London outfit.

Aiming to continue his team’s fine form away from home – 5 wins and 2 draws up to today – Ferguson fielded an attacking-minded 11 with an unchanged back four, Welbeck and Rooney up-front and Valencia and Nani out wide. Jones was, again, chosen alongside Carrick as defensive midfielder and the youngster produced yet another brilliant performance, further sign of his quality and development.

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For all that’s gone wrong, or seemingly gone wrong, for Manchester United over the last few months, things are suddenly looking brighter than they have been in one area for some time. With a win this afternoon at QPR, United will go top of the Premier League table for at least a few hours, and if the right result happens later in the day when City host in-form Arsenal, United will end the weekend in the best position they’ve been in since…you know when. For a side that’s dealt with so much recently, that would be a fantastic way to kick off the busy festive period, wouldn’t it?

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