Nistelrooy hat-trick helps Man U beat Newcastle
Ruud van Nistelrooy's second Manchester United hat-trick gave his side a 5-3 home victory over Newcastle United in a pulsating English premier league match at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Paul Scholes, commanding the midfield, put Manchester United ahead in the 25th minute when he stole forward to volley home Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's cross from the left into the roof of the net from the edge of the penalty area.
Solskjaer, a striker playing well in an unaccustomed right midfield position, scored the fifth in the 55th after van Nistelrooy had taken his tally to 50 by completing a 15-minute hat-trick two minutes earlier.
The Dutchman's first two goals, a close-range header from a Mickael Silvestre cross and a stoppage time tap-in from Diego Forlan's low shot, gave Manchester United a 3-1 halftime lead.
"It's fantastic," man-of-the-match Ruud van Nistelrooy told SkySports. "I think it was a great day for football; 5-3, I think everybody enjoyed it very much."
As for the implications of such a resounding win, before United start the Champions League second phase next week and then take on Liverpool and Arsenal in the premier league, the Dutchman said: "It gives us great confidence.
"There are a lot of big games coming up, so this is a great game for us to move on from."
SHEARER'S 100TH
Newcastle scored a surprise equaliser in the 35th minute when Olivier Bernard crossed from the left and the ball sailed over Fabien Barthez and in off the far post. Barthez took a step forward first as he misjudged the flight of the ball.
Alan Shearer appeared to have put the visiting back into the match when he scored his 100th premier league goal for Newcastle with a shot into the top corner from a tapped Gary Speed free kick.
But the Manchester side restored their two-goal lead with van Nistelrooy, apparently lucky not to be pulled back for offside, racing into the box to meet Forlan's pull-back close to Shay Given's right-hand post with a crisp header.
Craig Bellamy headed Newcastle's third past three static United defenders after Shearer had headed Nolberto Solano's corner into the middle 15 minutes from time.
The victory temporarily lifted United into fourth to within six points of leaders Arsenal and five of second-placed Liverpool, who were away at Southampton and Fulham respectively later in the day.
