Manchester United's Sir Alex Ferguson remains the master of mind games, believes Eugene YS Han. Even when he isn't trying.

Heroes

Sir Alex Ferguson
Ferguson 1-0 Benitez. Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez should be feeling a little foolish now that his scripted tirade against Manchester United's Alex Ferguson has backfired spectacularly. Liverpool had the chance to go six points clear last Saturday but only succeeded in being held, luckily I must add, by plucky Stoke. Ferguson 2-0 Benitez. Ferguson's team then went on to dismantle Chelsea in convincing fashion to send not just a message to Liverpool but to the rest of the BPL as well. Ferguson 3-0 Benitez. Ferguson calmly said after the Chelsea win: "He is obviously disturbed about something. When he reflects on it he must realise what a ridiculous thing he is saying." Ouch. Ferguson 4-0 Benitez. Ferguson then led his team to a win over Wigan in midweek and go within two points of Liverpool – and with a game in hand. The momentum is now firmly in United’s favour.

Manchester United
The disturbing thing about Manchester United's 3-0 win over Chelsea was they did not even break a sweat all night. They could have even won the game by five or six goals. Chelsea, who were undefeated away from home this season, had only one shot on target. United gave them a footballing lesson. They were inventive - United's set-pieces were deadly and productive but the cute corner routine should have counted. They were clinical - cue Wayne Rooney's neat sidefoot finish between Ashley Cole's legs. They were full of industry - Ryan Giggs, all of 35 years, ran the midfield for United with 'Three Lung' Park Ji-Sung and the vastly underrated Darren Fletcher. And to press home the point, the Red Devils did not start with Paul Scholes, Anderson and Michael Carrick - players one would feel can help control any midfield. And let’s not forget United had Carlos Tevez kicking his heels on the bench.

Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic have showed other big-spending clubs how to play to the best of their abilities and with minimal fuss. Up against Tottenham, Wigan were not shy in attacking. The Lactics deserved their win because they wanted it more than the Tottenham players. Steve Bruce will fight tooth and nail to keep his club’s best players during this transfer window.

Michael Owen
Kudos to Newcastle United's Michael Owen who scored his first goal from outside the box in seven years. Are you watching Fabio Capello?

Zeroes

Rafael Benitez
Sometimes nothing is opened more by mistake than the mouth. ESPN STAR Sports football analyst Steve McMahon thinks Rafael Benitez is starting the war of words with Alex Ferguson in a bid to put the pressure on Man Utd. But McMahon feels, in the long run, Benitez has no chance of winning the mind games. Just as Football Focus host John Dykes sees it, it would be the ultimate humiliation if the Football Association investigates his comments about Ferguson in the aftermath.

Chelsea
Chelsea simply did not turn up at Old Trafford as they surrendered their unbeaten away record in meek fashion. John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho played together for the first time this season but they were woeful as a defensive pairing. Didier Drogba spent more time on the ground and he was even outplayed and out-run by Manchester United's veteran Ryan Giggs. Chelsea looked one-dimensional and had all their flaws exposed by a rampant United side. Chelsea do have enough quality to come back from this defeat, but this massive loss will be a big shock to the system. Everyone must be wondering: How long can Luiz Felipe Scolari hang on to his job?

Scott Carson
Scott Carson's error in the Midlands derby was dreadful and it could come back to haunt them in the battle against relegation. West Bromwich Albion manager Tony Mowbray had warned everyone who cared to listen that his team has to cut out all the errors. "We're at a stage, looking at the second half of the season, where we have had a lot of hard luck stories. We don't want too many more hard luck stories. We don't want to be sitting after the game wondering how we lost another match." After the derby defeat to rivals Villa and the weather still ice-cold in England, we wonder where Carson will be sitting this whole week.

Harry Redknapp
Tottenham were dismal in their defeat to Wigan, a defeat which further aggravated their relegation fears. Harry Redknapp may be right in declaring he needed 'strong characters' in his team, but he should should be doing more with the bunch of players he presently has. Heurelho Gomes could hardly be blamed for conceding Wigan's late winner from a corner - he was already injured but Redknapp refused to substitute him. It was also Redknapp's error to keep almost £60million worth of talent on the bench in the game against Wigan. After arriving to White Hart Lane with great fanfare, Redknapp now finds his Spurs honeymoon effectively over. He should start to pull the team together, instead of pointing fingers and causing divisions in the squad.

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