Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney has hailed the performance of Paddy McNair in Saturday's 2-1 win over West Ham United.

The 19-year-old was drafted into the United XI following a host of injuries in defensive areas and impressed under severe second-half pressure from the Hammers.

"That was probably one of the bigger tests a young defender can face, up against a team putting in lots of crosses into the box, but he took it and stood up to it," Rooney told the club's official website.

"It won't get much tougher in terms of physical strength and aggression against him, but he dealt with it and we are all delighted with him. I saw the clearance he made at the end. I thought he was tremendous for us."

Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Jonny Evans and Tyler Blackett were all unavailable for United at the weekend.

Written by
Matt Law