Manchester Utd 1 West Brom 0Alex Ferguson's continuing dilemma over how best to deploy the six international midfielders at his disposal will become mathematically easier should Roy Keane be suspended for the contents of his autobiography.
At the start Nicky Butt had a holding role in front of United's back four, Juan Sebastian Veron was in the centre of midfield, David Beckham played wide right while Keane and Ryan Giggs took it in turns to partner Ruud van Nistelrooy up front.
At times the system looked fluid and formidable; on other occasions, when Giggs in particular seemed unsure of his position, it looked shapeless and slipshod. The loss of Keane would give Paul Scholes the chance to re-establish himself but of more concern to United's fans is Ferguson's persistence with Veron. At times Veron's vision and execution of passes were of a quality that no one in the Premiership can match. But equally often passes were hit with the inaccuracy of an over-enthused pub player. Yet his importance will increase should Keane be banned.
Such is the Argentinian's obvious class that Ferguson clearly feels he should stick by him, not least because he offers a different problem for opponents used to facing the 4-4-2 formation which has served United so well but in which Veron does not thrive.
The alternative is to revert to the trusted formula of Beckham, Keane or Butt, Scholes and Giggs lining up across the midfield.
On Saturday the former United player Lou Macari said: "Deep down Ferguson knows Scholes is a better player than Veron. A 4-4-2 formation is staring him in the face."
Albion's manager Gary Megson, on the other hand, suggested the formation allowed United's midfielders to run beyond his own midfield. He said: "Their passing and movement was terrific. They are the yardstick for everybody."
United's fans seem unsure. After a fruitless 59 minutes Veron was replaced with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who eventually won the game with his 100th goal for the club, and immediately the home support seemed to relax, happy to see their team playing 4-4-2.
Yet not until after the introduction of Scholes with 20 minutes left had United's domination been rewarded; the midfielder's instinctive pass found Solskjaer, who finished with typical conviction.
Guardian Service
MANCHESTER UTD: Carroll, Phil Neville (Scholes 71), O'Shea, Blanc, Silvestre (Forlan 76), Beckham, Butt, Keane, Veron (Solskjaer 59), van Nistelrooy, Giggs. Subs Not Used: Williams, Tierney. Booked: Keane. Goals: Solskjaer 78.
WEST BROM: Hoult, Gilchrist, Moore, Sigurdsson, Clement, Johnson, Gregan (Taylor 83), McInnes, Balis, Roberts (Marshall 69), Dichio (Dobie 60). Subs Not Used: Jensen, Wallwork. Sent Off: McInnes (64). Booked: McInnes.
Referee: S Bennett (Kent).
