Manchester United took top spot in the Premier League table after a narrow 1-0 win away at Bolton.
Dimitar Berbatov proved to be the hero of the day for Sir Alex Ferguson’s men, snatching a late winner to break Trotters hearts.
Both sides struggled to find any fluency during the opening exchanges, with attacking endeavour thin on the ground.
As the game wore on Fabrice Muamba did test Edwin van der Sar with a dipping effort from the edge of the box, but that was as good as it got for the hosts.
United sprung to life with the interval approaching but Jussi Jaaskelainen was equal to everything Cristiano Ronaldo and co. could throw at him.
The second half then followed much the same pattern, with hard work failing to bring about goalscoring opportunities. Ferguson introduced Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes 20 minutes from time and the old stagers soon combined for a corner routine that saw the former England man’s bullet strike fly wide off Gary Cahill.
If Ronaldo profited from an element of fortune last season, nothing is falling for him this year.
A third free-kick was too powerful for Jaaskelainen to hold but yet again the rebound fell Bolton’s way and it seemed United would have to settle for a draw.
But, as Ferguson’s teams have proved so often down the years, they can salvage any situation.
And Berbatov appears to be a very quick learner