Never Boxed In: Manchester United 4 Newcastle 3

Man United manager Sir Alex Ferguson arguing with the referees at half time regarding a decision involving an own goal by Jonny Evans

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

Starting Lineups (courtesy of Soccerway.com)

Goals of the Game

Manchester United: Evans (25'), Evra (58'), van Persie (70'), Hernandez (90')

Newcastle United: Perch (5'), Evans (OG 29'), P. Cisse (68')

Boxing Day was not the smoothest of days for the Red Devils, who had to recover from a controversial switcheroo decision, on top of having to draw level three times, in order to win against a resilient Newcastle side.

United's leaky defense immediately took center stage in the start of the first half. Newcastle's Demba Ba had a rocket shot from 25 yards parried poorly by David de Gea, with James Perch collecting the rebound. Newcastle would sit deep for some duration as United searched for the equalizer, which they did. A Van Persie free kick caused a scramble inside the box. Hernandez would take the first shot but the Toon's keeper Krul would punch it out, only to have Evans slot it in.

Man United defender Jonny Evans taps in the rebound to equalize. He would, however, net an own goal later.

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

Then the controversy came in.

Five minutes after Jonny Evans acquired the equalizer, Newcastle were on the counter-attack. Danny Simpson took a shot from somewhere in the 25-yard range when Papiss Cisse was called offside. Evans, however, tried to clear it, only to deflect it to his own net. The goal was disallowed at first, but after a talk between the referees, the goal had been given and Newcastle break for half-time leading the game.

After ruling it out, referee Mike Dean allowed the Evans own goal.

Image retrieved from The Telegraph UK

Patrice Evra powers in the ball to get United their second equlizer of the night

Image retrieved from The Telegraph UK

Patrice Evra literally kickstarted the second-half with a smashing goal at the 58th minute. After Tim Krul made a poor clearance, Evra pounced from the left wing towards the edge of the penalty area with gusto, and smashed the ball home. Cisse would be Newcastle's reply ten minutes later, after he controlled Obertan's cross and shot in from 15 yards. United would climb the mountain for the third time when United's prolific Dutchman, Robin van Persie, struck and hit the back of the net after a second attempt.

Papiss Cisse (most left, in light green) drives in a magnificent goal that put his side on the lead for the third time in the night

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

Robin van Persie's goal helped United draw level for the third time

Image retrieved from The Telegraph UK

United was on the prowl. Hernandez would knock on Krul's door twice with two headers, to no avail. Then came the magic moment, the ultimate proof that the Red Devils are the Ultimate Comeback Kings. Michael Carrick's cross put the ball on Hernandez' foot. From there, the Mexican talisman would bolt the ball in and score the winning goal for the reds.

Chicharito kicks in the emphatic winning goal for Manchester United. Full time score was 4-3.

Image retrieved from the Stretford End Arising Facebook Page

While the red side of Manchester celebrated in their exhilarating triumph over Newcastle, the blue side was mourning. Somewhere in the Northeast, Sunderland just beat Manchester City 1-0, with the former City player Adam Johnson scoring the emphatic winner.

Boxing day came to a close with Manchester United refusing to be boxed in. They fought and cemented their place on the top of the league with seven points clear over their rivals Manchester City.

Use Your Head: Newcastle 0 Manchester United 3

Jonny Evans' header put the Reds in the lead just eight minutes from kick-off

Image retrieved from The Telegraph UK

Goals of the Game

Newcastle: --

Manchester United: Evans (8'), Evra (16'), Cleverley (71')

Despite the expectations, this fixture turned out overall to be a one-sided game as Manchester United shocked Newcastle at St. James Park, with the Reds winning 3-0.

An open game was the order of the day for the first five minutes, with both sides having their share of possession. At the eight minute, it was a supposed to be a routine corner kick for United when Newcastle suddenly had a snooze in their defense, allowing center-half Jonny Evans to move forward and head in a cracking opening goal. The same story would happen in as much the same time, when it was Evra who was allowed to move forward and head in the Red Devils' second goal.

Much of the second half remained goal-less but not in any way quiet. A string of challenges and tackles provided a great entertainment for the neutral spectator, with the referee making a series of bookings. United on the nervy defense and Newcastle on the frustrated attack had players like Van Persie, Ferdinand, Tiote and Gutierrez all getting yellow cards.

Evra celebrates as he heads in the second goal for Manchester United

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

Newcastle picked up the notch in the second-half, dominating much of the possession, but lacking the finishing touch. The silent hush in the crowd pretty much told their fear: "It wasn't Newcastle's day today." Newcastle came close to getting one back from a corner when Ba attempted to get a goal on the rebound but De Gea saved it. Replay showed the ball, or parts of it, crossed the line. A tough call for the linesman. Still, the Toons fought for every ball and forced the Manchester side into defense until a break saw United win one free kick from 25 yards. Like the Evans goal, it was supposed to be a routine cross, but Harper got a lax a bit too much and the Cleverley's ball flies past Van Persie, past Rooney, and into the back of the net, clinching the third goal for the Reds.

The rest, as they say, was history.

Rooney is pretty much today's man of the match, though Jonny Evans is a very, very close second. Both did exceptionally well on the ball, both in offense and defense. This is a shock for Rooney, who doesn't exactly like playing deep. Still, he took the role well, and did his side a lot of good.

Patrice Evra also noticeable in this game, especially after a string of sub-par performances.

The combination of Cleverley and Carrick is proving to be a winner thus far, being able to deflect a lot of goals as the partnership grew.

From a series of recent not-so-good performances, United did very well in this game, against a formidable side, too. Not to mention that the Manchester side got two goals from two corners, a rare feat. The Reds go into the second international break back at the top 3, surely a good sight for Sir Alex Ferguson.