Ferguson: Rooney was world class

Sir Alex Ferguson praised Wayne Rooney after the striker scored the winning goal to send Manchester United to Wembley.

Rooney headed in a superb cross from Ryan Giggs deep into added time to give United a 4-3 win against Manchester City and set up a Carling Cup final date against Aston Villa.

Ferguson told Sky Sports: “I thought Rooney was much better today than he was on Saturday (against Hull City), and yet he scored four goals on Saturday.

“His control, leading of the line and penetration was absolutely fantastic. It was a true world-class performance.”

He added: “It’s a derby game, and you like to win your derby games.

“The atmosphere tonight, and the fact it was a semi-final tie, added a lot of spice to the match.

“And the fact we scored so late in the game brought a special type of celebration.”

“I think we kept our patience, I think this was important.

“Nothing really happened in the first half. They sat very deep.

“What we said at half-time was to keep playing our football and keep spreading our play.

“I am proud of the team. I also must pay tribute to our support. They were unbelievable.”