Bolton: Manchester United eased to a 5-0 win at Bolton on Saturday with Wayne Rooney bagging his second hat-trick in as many games.
United were really in the mood in the first half as they romped to a 3-0 lead inside 25 minutes with a goal from Javier Hernandez and a brace from Rooney, whilst Bolton struggled to cope with their visitor’s attacking ability.
In the second period, both strikers grabbed another goal each, but could have added several more as the match neared the heights of United’s last league match, the 8-2 victory against Arsenal.
It didn’t even take Javier Hernandez five minutes into his first start of the season before he opened his account for the year as he flicked the ball home from the near post, but a lot of credit should be given to Nani who delivered a brilliant low cross from the right.
The hosts almost hit back a minute later as Martin Petrov crossed from the left, but United failed to clear it properly and Chris Eagles got a shot away, but the combination of Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand saved it on the line.
United came close to extending their lead in the 12th minute as the visitors hit Bolton on the counter-attack, but Rooney couldn’t quite reach Hernandez’s cross from the right and Gary Cahill conceded a corner.
They did, however, extend their lead just shy of the 20-minute mark as Wayne Rooney got on the end of a Phil Jones cross, poking the ball out of the reach of Jussi Jaaskelainen into the bottom far corner.
Minutes later, United had their third, owing much thanks to a sublime run from Phil Jones as he skipped past several tackles as he charged down the right before eventually having a shot blocked, but Rooney was on hand to smash home the rebound from six yards.
Despite just a few minutes after, Hernandez thought he had added a fourth; however, he was flagged offside and the score remained as it was until the second half with Bolton barely registering a shot on the United goal in the first period.
The second half started with Bolton actually looking to pressurise David De Gea in the United goal, but at first he was equal to Mark Davies’ shot from just outside the box, and soon after he rose well to catch a Kevin Davies header.
Hernandez should have got his second of the day as he gambled on Jaaskelainen to make a heavy first touch from De Gea’s clearance, but after getting the ball, instead of hitting it first time, Chicharito opted for a touch and when he eventually got a shot away, it was tame, allowing Bolton to find safety.
However, two minutes later, he did get his second as Michael Carrick shot from the edge of the box, but a deflection took it straight to the little Mexican, who was left with the simplest of finishes.
Still with 23 minutes to go, Wayne Rooney claimed his hat-trick, smashing a Nani pass into the bottom left corner after the Portuguese winger received a brilliant pass from Ryan Giggs and picked out the England international in the 'D' of the penalty area.
That goal consolidated a remarkable feat with Rooney becoming the first player in Premier League history to score eight goals in four matches.
United came close to adding a sixth five minutes from time as Nani found Hernandez in the box with a clever pass, but when through on goal, the Mexican tried to square the ball to Anderson, but the pass was just too far ahead of him.
In all honesty, Bolton were never really in the game with United's lightening quick start effectively ending the match as a contest minutes after starting as the Premier League champions completely outclassed their hosts.
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