Wayne Rooney is confident Liverpool's leaky
defence will ensure Manchester United remain in 'pole position' for
the Premier League title.
Rafael Benitez's men have been involved in a couple of
thrilling 4-4 draws in their last two outings, games which
supporters will talk about for a long time to come.
But the cold, hard facts are the Merseysiders have bowed out of
the Champions League and dropped two points in a title race United
seem to be going well in again after a recent dip in form.
And Rooney feels the Red Devils are perfectly placed to take
advantage of their rivals' weaknesses.
"Liverpool seem to be leaking goals at the minute," the England
striker told Setanta Sports' Friday Football Show.
"They are scoring a lot but conceding a lot as well.
"We had a little blip where we lost a couple of games, but since
then we've won all our matches and we are definitely in pole
position to win the league."
While United are again in front of the television cameras
tomorrow, Liverpool's encounter with Hull at the KC Stadium is not
being televised.
Given the tension of a battle to win the championship, keeping
away from your opponents' fixtures could be seen as a positive
thing.
Not for Rooney, who loves every excrutiating minute.
Being involved in such a closely fought battle for the Premier
League crown is an experience the former Everton star is thoroughly
enjoying.
"It is a brilliant thing to be a part of," said the
23-year-old.
"When you are watching the other team playing you are wanting
them to drop points and then when you are playing it is about
trying to get them."
A title hat-trick would be represent a fourth championship for
Rio Ferdinand, who is starting to establish among a group of
multi-medal winners headed by Ryan Giggs.
Ferdinand may never get near Giggs' haul, or the 800 appearances
the Welshman will have made the next time he puts on a United
shirt.
But, after angering fans by failing to sign a contract extension
four years ago amid speculation about a possible move to Chelsea,
the 30-year-old seems content with life at Old Trafford and is
ready to commit himself to the club for the remainder of his
career.
"The idea of playing in Italy is nice but I have got a young
family and I wouldn't want to uproot them and move there,"
Ferdinand told £5 Magazine.
"Moving out of London to Manchester was hard enough."