A deflected strike from Robin van Persie after just 33 seconds was enough for Manchester United to collect maximum points from their home encounter with West Ham United tonight.

The Red Devils had chances to extend their lead as the game progressed, but they were unable to breach Jussi Jaaskelainen's net for a second time at Old Trafford.

Below, Sports Mole looks back over the fixture to see whether or not West Ham can argue that they deserved a share of the spoils.

Match statistics:

Man United:
Shots 23
On target 13
Possession 55%
Corners 5
Fouls 7

West Ham:
Shots 9
On target 3
Possession 45%
Corners 5
Fouls 9

Was the result fair?

A scoreline of 1-0 normally reads like a close game that could have gone either way. However, on this occasion you never really got the impression that West Ham were going to find an equaliser. That's not to say that they didn't work hard for it, but there was always an element of control about United.

Man United's performance

United never looked in any real danger. Having said that, when United went 1-0 up within the opening minute, many expected them to go on and score four or five. It didn't happen though - thanks largely to some poor passing choices in the final third. They kept a clean sheet though, which will have pleased Sir Alex Ferguson.

West Ham's performance

The Hammers deserve a lot of credit for not falling to pieces after Van Persie's goal. They defended really well and made United work hard for their goalscoring chances. At times they got forward well, particularly in the second half.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Anderson: Ferguson waxed lyrical about Anderson before this match and he didn't let his manager down tonight. Everything about the Brazilian was positive and he set up numerous United attacks with some excellent passes.

Biggest gaffe

Without sounding like a cop out, there was no error so glaring that it warranted being included in this section. Anything mentioned would be too harsh to describe as a "gaffe."

Referee performance

A quiet evening for Mike Jones, who had no big issues to call. He did book a handful of players, but in fairness to Jones they were all deserved cautions.

What next?

Man United: United are on the road next time out when they travel to Reading on Saturday evening.

West Ham: It's a London derby for the Hammers on Saturday afternoon when they play host to Chelsea.