Nani cheers United with Champions League win

Manchester United shrugged off the disappointment of Wayne Rooney’s imminent departure to defeat Turkish side Bursaspor 1-0 in the Champions League here Wednesday.

A sublime first-half goal from Portuguese international Nani clinched victory for Sir Alex Ferguson’s men on a day when events off the pitch dominated the headlines at Old Trafford.

The victory left the English giants comfortably on course to qualify from Group C, with seven points from three games.

Yet if Ferguson had been looking for a stirring response from his players after Rooney accused United of lacking ambition in a statement released shortly before kick-off in which he confirmed his intention to quit, the veteran Scottish manager would have been disappointed.

While United dominated possession for long periods, a starting midfield featuring Michael Carrick, Darren Fletcher and Anderson was rarely able to conjure up the guile to break down the Turkish champions.

Federico Macheda struggled to impose himself in attack and it was left to Nani to provide much of the attacking threat before a crowd of 72,610.

United were barely threatened by the visitors in the opening exchanges, stroking the ball around comfortably against opponents who appeared to be suffering a bad case of stage-fright.

The opener came after Fletcher found Nani just outside the area. The elusive winger turned his man brilliantly and ghosted towards goal before curling a superb shot beyond Dimitar Ivankov.

Ivankov had been forewarned of the United threat after only three minutes, Anderson sending Macheda bearing down on goal with a deft pass only for the Italian to see his shot well saved.

Yet United’s early promise fizzled out after Nani scored, and for all their slick approach play Ferguson’s men were unable to created many goalscoring opportunities. All too often the final ball went astray and United attacks broke down.

With Bursaspor defending deep, the visitors looked for opportunities on the counter-attack and had United on the back foot on 30 minutes when a slip by Nemanja Vidic allowed Ozan Ipek to break.

Fullback Rafael — one of United’s best performers on the night — was alive to the danger however, covering well to snuff out the threat.

The introduction of Gabriel Obertan and Mexican international Javier Hernandez gave United more thrust later in the second half but the home fans had to settle for victory by a solitary goal.