Rooney and Park see off Reds

Wayne Rooney and Park Ji-Sung fired Manchester United back to the top of the Premier League as they came from behind to beat Liverpool at Old Trafford.

The irrepressible England international fired home his 33rd goal of the season in the 12th minute to restore parity with midfielder Park diving bravely to head in the winner on the hour mark.

A blistering start to the eagerly-anticipated encounter saw Fernando Torres climb unmarked eight yards out to power a header beyond Edwin van der Sar following Dirk Kuyt's excellent cross from the right with just five minutes gone.

But United were soon level with Javier Mascherano penalised by Howard Webb for bringing down Antonio Valencia as he looked to burst into the box, with a spot-kick awarded by the referee even though the offence began outside the area.

Jose Reina made a superb save to initially deny Rooney from 12 yards, but the ball fell kindly to the in-form striker who made no mistake with his second chance as he rolled into the empty net in the 12th minute.

The pace dropped somewhat after the frantic opening, with the key moment arriving in the 60th minute as Darren Fletcher delivered a telling ball into the box from wide on the right for South Korea international Park to head home at the far post amid the flying boots.

Sir Alex Ferguson's side restored their two-point advantage over Arsenal at the top of the table, while a 10th defeat of the season for Liverpool leaves them four points adrift of Tottenham in fourth, having also played a game more.

This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.