Man United win 20th Premier league title

Manchester United win Premier League title after beating Aston Villa following Robin van Persie hat-trick

At the final whistle, as Manchester United’s victorious players celebrated on the pitch, Rio Ferdinand ran across to Robin van Persie and turned the Dutchman around so his back pointed to a television camera. Ferdinand grabbed the striker’s shirt by the sides, stretching it so the number filled the lens: No 20

United’s 20th title was settled by the unerring finishing of Van Persie, whose first-half appropriation of the match-ball took him to 24 goals in the Premier League. Sir Alex Ferguson kept his promise to respond to Sergio Agüero’s last-minute goal for Manchester City against QPR that defined last season’s race.
He bought the Footballer of the Year for £24 million from Arsenal, a guaranteed source of goals, the most precious currency in the game. It was the move that decided the title.

It will be with a broad smile that Van Persie returns to the Emirates next Sunday, when Arsenal players are expected to form a guard of honour for the new champions. Later that evening in London, in elegant surroundings on Park Lane, the PFA will announce their Player of the Year.
It could be Gareth Bale. It should be Van Persie. Voting for the football writers’ Footballer of the Year opened yesterday and Van Persie could pip the popular Bale for the award.

Van Persie’s first arrived in the second minute, created by Wayne Rooney with a sweeping pass from his central midfield role to Antonio Valencia on the right. The winger was offside but the assistant referee, so close he could almost have touched Valencia, somehow did not see the offence.
Valencia dummied this way and that, looking to wrong-foot Joe Bennett, before cutting the ball back to Rafael. The Brazilian crossed deep to the far-post, where Ryan Giggs turned the ball back across for Van Persie to poach his first.

Rafael hit a post, Christian Benteke almost equalised before the Van Persie Show soon resumed. Rooney again played a part in the creative work, this time a particularly magnificent part. Rooney was enjoying a ludicrous amount of space in midfield, as if Fabian Delph and Ashley Westwood were too in awe to get close.
Rooney simply drilled the ball through for Van Persie, whose response from the edge of the area was breathtaking. Images from the history book of great goals filtered through. Never taking his eyes off the incoming delivery, echoing Paul Gascoigne against Scotland at euro 96, the Dutchman met it with a left-footed volley that flew past Brad Guzan.

“That’s why we’re champions” chanted the Stretford End. Why? Partly because of Rooney’s technique, vision and willingness to play anywhere for the team. He was occasionally careless in possession, and Ferguson was out of the dugout to gesture disapproval, but Rooney has contributed considerably to United’s title campaign; his 12 goals included important ones against City.