Rooney stunner seals derby win for Man United

LONDON (Reuters) - England striker Wayne Rooney conjured a breathtaking overhead kick to earn Premier League leaders Manchester United a 2-1 victory over Manchester City in a memorable derby on Saturday.

With his back to goal, Rooney struck with an acrobatic volley that flew into the top corner in the 78th minute to virtually end City’s title hopes. Arsenal remain on United’s tail thanks to Robin Van Persie’s double in a 2-0 home victory over bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Rooney’s Old Trafford winner left manager Alex Ferguson purring with admiration.

“I’ve not seen anything like it, that’s for sure,” a beaming Ferguson told Sky Sports.

“It was stunning, unbelievable. We’ve had some fantastic goals here but in terms of the execution, you’ll never see that.”

United had taken the lead shortly before halftime with a well-taken Nani effort before David Silva equalised with a fortuitous goal midway through the second half.

The result gave United 57 points from 26 games with Arsenal on 53 from 26. City’s title prospects are receding as they are on 49 having played a game more.

Tottenham Hotspur moved above Chelsea into fourth spot with 47 points from 26 after Croatia midfielder Niko Kranjcar struck the winner for the second successive week in a 2-1 win at Sunderland. Chelsea face Fulham on Monday.

Liverpool’s surge under Kenny Dalglish slowed as they were held 1-1 by Wigan Athletic at Anfield to slip eight points off the top four in sixth spot.

At the other end of the table West Ham United recovered from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 at West Bromwich Albion, Blackpool drew 1-1 with Aston Villa and Birmingham City scored late to earn a vital 1-0 win at home to Stoke City. Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United ended goalless.

Last Saturday’s 41-goal spree in the Premier League was always going to be a tough act to follow but the weekend will be remembered for a moment of Rooney magic that even had rival manager Roberto Mancini describing it as genius.