No substitute for Solskjaer

Manchester United 1 West Bromwich Albion

At the end Old Trafford exuded no proper sense of triumphalism but relief. After a week Manchester United will prefer not to remember, an upset on the opening day of the Premiership season would have added gusts to already heavy turbulence, but they did just enough to rebuild a façade of calm.

The statistics conveyed a sense of familiarity. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer came on as a substitute and scored, Roy Keane was booked and United won their opening domestic fixture. But behind those bald facts lay an afternoon which could have gone badly wrong.

West Bromwich Albion, in England's top division for the first time in 16 years, scrapped with the intensity of a Keane tackle and succumbed only 12 minutes from time, by which point Sir Alex Ferguson had become so desperate for a goal he had stripped his side to two defenders.

But when the United manager needs a scorer he usually finds himself sitting on the bench beside him and Solskjaer played out his cameo to perfection, delivering after being on the pitch less than 20 minutes. Paul Scholes, another stellar substitute, breached the Albion rearguard with a deft flick and, with studied care, Solskjaer drove the ball beyond the hitherto impregnable Russell Hoult.

"He did take his time over it," Ferguson said. "I was urging him to hit it early but he made sure."

If his colleagues had shown similar ruthlessness Solskjaer could have spent the whole of a steamy afternoon sunbathing on the bench but even taking United's superiority in terms of chances into account, the outcome paid scant respect to the spirit and endeavour of the visitors, who laboured prodigiously to mark their Premiership debut with at least a draw.

They are going to win few friends for the spirit of adventure but their doggedness and discipline is admirable and they might have got away with a 0-0 draw had their captain, Derek McInnes, not been sent off for a two-footed jump at Nicky Butt. His departure made it a mission too far.

"You can't argue with it," Gary Megson, the Albion manager said. "A two-footed challenge is deemed a straight red card but it is the first day of the season and in future I would expect every two-footed tackle to be treated the same way, no matter which shirt the player is wearing."

United's players probably feel they have spent the pre-season dodging tackles because quite apart from Keane's ill-judged written comments about Alf-Inge Haaland that could land him in court as well as FA hot water, he treated his colleagues to withering criticism of their attitude both verbally and in print.

A few precious egos were trodden on when he suggested his team-mates had managed to win nothing last season because of an over-indulgence in achievement. In his opinion, the plumped up cushions of comfort were becoming too welcoming for millionaires in red shirts, who in Keane's words, were "too used to Rolex watches, flashy cars and mansions".

There was little sign either of a ravenous appetite in Hungary on Wednesday night when United were embarrassed by Zalaegerszeg's late goal. Worse, that Champions' League qualifying game left Wes Brown with a broken ankle that will take him out of commission for three months. Brown joined Rio Ferdinand, Fabien Barthez and Gary Neville as absentees from United's defence yesterday but if the home back four has an air of necessity about it, there was no shortage of choice further upfield and Solskjaer was deposited on the bench to accommodate Butt's return to midfield.

The one-striker option is not regarded fondly by United's followers but yesterday you could not argue that the home team lacked threat, just accuracy. Ryan Giggs and Keane both should have scored in the first 20 minutes but when Butt weaved around Hoult after 35 minutes and still managed to hit a post, alebit from a narrow angle, a sense of foreboding began to grow for the Premiership favourites. That intensified when Giggs majestically swept on to Ruud van Nistelrooy's backheel only to shoot disappointingly wide and a bad week could have got decidedly worse if Jason Roberts had put the visitors ahead just after half-time.

The Albion striker had already exposed Laurent Blanc's lack of a top gear in the first half and the 36-year-old French centre-half resembled a tractor in the fast lane as Roberts made the most of Butt's mispass and John O'Shea's faulty tackle. If Roberts had possessed confidence in his left foot, the result would probably have been a goal, instead he went round the outside allowing Roy Carroll to block his shot.

United reverted to type, Van Nistelrooy was denied by a flying save from Hoult but it was a measure of increasing anxiety in the home ranks that Keane was booked for a late tackle on McInnes on the hour. But McInnes, fired by a caution of his own for time wasting, crashed into a tackle with Butt to reduce his side to 10 men.

With a numerical disadvantage the visitors were unlikely to hold out and as the game became a one-way street Solskjaer duly supplied his 100th goal for United. "He's a fantastic professional," Ferguson enthused. "And a wonderful man. He analyses what's happening on the field all the time and 100 goals at this club, considering the time he spent on the bench, is remarkable. What a substitute."

Manchester United 1 West Bromwich Albion 0
Solskjaer 78

Half-time: 0-0 Attendance: 67,645