Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has hailed his side after they overcame a controversial first-half goal and fought back from behind three times to defeat Newcastle 4-3 on Boxing Day.
The Red Devils moved seven points clear at the summit thanks to the win which came about after Javier Hernandez’s 90th minute winner.
Earlier, the referee had given a Jonny Evans own goal to make it 2-1, although Papiss Cisse appeared offside as he was interfering with play as the Northern Irishman tried to clear. Ferguson was full of praise for the performance which he believes said a lot about the character of the side as they overcame any challenges.
“The statement we made was the performance,” Ferguson said. “That was a championship performance.
“I just wish it was the last game of the season but it tells you about the fantastic courage of our team - we never gave in.
“We had a lot of bad decisions against us in the first half. That can demoralise a team. But they didn’t give in and that’s a great quality to have.
“Three times down, three times coming back - and then scoring the winner. It’s a really significant result for us. It puts us in a good position. December is always a month which tells you everything and hopefully after Wigan on January 1, we will still be talking like this.”