Smalling: Victory was vital

Chris Smalling was relieved to pick up all three points as Manchester United came back from two goals behind to defeat Hull City at the KC Stadium.
The hosts raced into a two-goal lead early on, before Smalling's header sparked the response, with Wayne Rooney's stunning effort and an own goal from former Reds defender James Chester eventually securing the win.

United centre-back Smalling was delighted to get his name on the scoresheet, and believes the victory could give his side a boost in the title race. He told MUTV: "It was great [for me] to chip in [with a goal], and I think it gave us some real momentum.

"Wayne [Rooney] has been putting in some great crosses from these set pieces and he came up with the second goal himself.

"I think it’s going to be a pivotal three points and it keeps us on this run as well, which is important because it is difficult when you have to play again two days later. It’s always easier when you go into a game off the back of a win.

"We had belief going into this game, and after this win we’ll continue to pick it up. I think we've had our setbacks this season, we need to make sure that we don’t have any more and that we keep winning."

As for the game itself, the defender was critical of the way United began the game, but praised the fighting spirit shown by his team mates.

"It was a terrible start," admitted Smalling. "In the last few games we've done well and haven’t conceded many goals, so it was very disappointing. We knew they had two big men up front, we didn't quite organise ourselves and we allowed them too much room.

"We tidied that up in the dressing room [at half-time], and luckily for us we managed to come back [and win], because otherwise it could have been a killer [result]. It was unfortunate for Hull that he [James Chester] put it in his own goal.

"Hull might feel that they had a lot of chances, especially in the last ten minutes. It was a truly crazy Boxing Day game and I've never looked at the clock so much. We need to make sure there aren't too many more games like that."

Moment Todays

Moment Todays

 17:55 That's all from us in United Today this week. We hope you've enjoyed our updates and we'll see you again tomorrow for the West Ham match at Old Trafford. Come on, you Reds. (BH)

17:00 David Moyes has lauded Adnan Januzaj's progress, insisting the 18-year-old's "way ahead of schedule". Read more from the United manager. (NC)

15:36 It was interesting to hear the manager say earlier that Darren Fletcher’s return has had a really positive impact on the team. Fletch is clearly as popular with his team-mates as he is the fans and aside from what he brings to United on the pitch, his experience and professionalism off it will be a huge asset to David Moyes in the coming weeks and months. To hear Darren’s thoughts on his recent comeback be sure to tune into MUTV’s ‘Countdown to Kick-off’ programme at 6pm tonight which contains an exclusive interview with the ever-popular Scot. (NT)

14:04 Here are the main points from David Moyes’ press conference.

Report: Hull 2 United 3

Wayne Rooney scored his 150th Premier League for Manchester United as the champions came from two down to secure a vastly-entertaining Boxing Day triumph at the KC Stadium.
Having arrived late to the venue due to traffic congestion, the Reds made a poor start and conceded after just four minutes when ex-United player James Chester latched onto Alex Bruce’s header to score Hull City's opener from close-range - although replays showed the corner that led to the goal should not have been given. Things then went from bad to worse as Jonny Evans diverted David Meyler’s weak shot past a helpless David De Gea.
With backs against the wall, United reacted quickly as Adnan Januzaj (on for the injured Rafael) won a free kick on the right wing, teeing up Chris Smalling to score from an expertly delivered Rooney setpiece. The latter then restored parity himself with a brilliantly taken half-volley that comfortably beat goalkeeper Allan McGregor from around 25 yards.

Hull's manager, the United legend Steve Bruce, made two enforced changes at the break - replacing goalkeeper McGregor with deputy Steve Harper and sending on Robert Koren in Meyler's place. His side restarted brightly, almost taking the lead on 52 minutes when Yannick Sagbo’s powerful drive forced a decent save from De Gea. Bruce's son Alex then struck the bar with a thumping header on the hour.
Thankfully, the Reds were relieved moments later when Ashley Young’s cross was headed into his own net by Chester. The latter's 66th-minute error ultimately sealed a terrific win, although the Reds were also grateful to De Gea for denying Danny Graham with a crucial block in injury time. The victory lifted United up to sixth place in the Barclays Premier League before the other Boxing Day matches kicked off.

Do Not Hurry Leave Porto to Manchester United

Porto defender Eliaquim Mangala admitted that he did not want to get out of Porto. The Frenchman is reportedly being targeted by Manchester United and Chelsea.

"I do not want to rush to leave Porto," said Mangala.

"Now a year ndah for me. We won the Portuguese Liga twice in a row and I am currently a top choice after a poor first season in Portugal.

"Porto are a big club in Europe and I am getting one appearance with the French team, I have to thank this club.

The 22-year-old player is resigned from Porto in 2011 from Belgian club Standard Liege. In total this season Mangala has played 16 times for Porto.

Valencia: We're on the charge

Antonio Valencia has rediscovered some of his best form this season, so when United Review caught up with the flying Ecuadorian winger he spoke about his and the Reds' determination to turn in a successful campaign...

David Moyes has been full of praise for you this season – how happy are you with your form?
I've been pleased. It's something I've been working hard on and I will continue to work hard to make sure I keep doing my job well. I must say as well that, as a team, I think we are improving and our form is on the up. It's important we keep that going.

You previously stated that you weren't too happy last season from a personal perspective; what have you done differently this term?
I suppose the previous season to that [2011/12] I'd set the bar quite high with my performances, which was something that was a little unexpected but I was very happy about. Last season I had a niggling problem with my back, which didn't allow me to train properly, whereas there is no sign of that now. I feel great, and have been able to train to my maximum and put in 100 per cent. That has been paying dividends in the games.

You changed your shirt number this term, what was the thinking behind that?
There is no negative reason as to why I changed it. I don't want people to think that I wasn't doing my job for the team because of any added pressure of wearing the no.7 shirt, it was more to do with the fact that 25 was the number I had when I first came to the club and I played well wearing that number. So I thought 'why don't I go back to 25?' because I had good times and good fortune in that shirt.

David Moyes has slightly changed the team's system this season – has that impacted on your form?
I'm just trying to do what the manager tells me! [Smiles] He has come in with his own way of setting things up tactically and it's down to us as players to work hard as a unit to put all that into practice. Any formation changes haven't had too big an effect on me because my job is about getting past defenders, putting crosses in and creating chances for others. But I also understand I have a job to do when it comes to combining tactically with others around me so I've focused on doing both.

You've played with a variety of full-backs behind you this term – Rafael, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones – and seem to have a good relationship with them all...
Yes, it's great and I enjoy playing with all of them. I don't have a preference for which player I play with. I think we all work well together and have a good understanding. Those three players are all having good seasons as well.

How would you sum up the campaign so far from the team's perspective?
Whenever you get a new manager, you're always going to have a settling-in period where there might be some negative results as well as positive ones. We've had some incredible games this season in which we've played really well, but other times we haven't played as well as we've wanted to and things have gone against us. The win at Aston Villa was important and we want to build on that.

You and your team-mates are used to being among the leading pack in the league – how have you dealt with not being up there so far?
It hurts. We're a team that is always used to being up around the top two or three places in the league. Where we are now, after dropping some silly points against teams we know we should have beaten, especially at home, hurts even more. It's difficult, but all you can do is look back at what's gone wrong in certain games and focus on putting those things right and doing your best.

There are lots of points up for grabs over the festive period; how influential can this spell be for United?
This is always a big time in the season and it's down to us to work really hard and play well. It would be nice to see the other teams above us drop some points, but we know we need to aim for maximum points from these games. There have been some crazy results in the league this season, but that's the Premier League for you. Every team can take points off each other. We have a chance to put a run of results together in the next couple of weeks and we must do that.

What would the players regard as a successful campaign?
Our aim for the moment is to make sure we are in and around the top four or five at the start of January so we can push on from there. Our aim and objective every season is to win as many trophies as we can; that hasn't changed. It never will.