Canaries crestfallen as old stagers keep United in the chase

A lot can happen in Fergie time.

Over the years a lot has, as Bayern Munich defenders might tell you, if they are not still thumping turf in frustration.

Ryan Giggs has made plenty of headlines since 1991, although the most recent ones haven’t been quite in keeping with the rest of his bulging scrapbook.

Yet it was almost inevitable that someone in a red shirt would pop up with a winner in stoppage time and given that this was Giggs’ 900th game for United, it just had to be him.

Fergie certainly thought so as the winger he first introduced as a fresh-faced 17-year-old made sure he was on the end of Ashley Young’s ball to the back post to make sure United remained two points behind the Premier League leaders, those noisy neighbours who keep on winning at home and plugging away at the top.

United boast the better record away from their own patch though and you know that might prove significant come the day of reckoning in May.

“Everyone knows we never give in, no matter who plays us, they know they will have to play right to the death,” Ferguson said, and there was no arguing with that.

“Given the career Ryan has had, to score the winning goal with the last kick of the game, he deserved that.”

But the fact that a last-gasp winner was required was proof that not everything was plain sailing for the reigning champions.

True, Paul Scholes’ seventh-minute opener had been all too easy, a simple back-post nod after Nani had picked him out and the Norwich defence had failed to pick him up.

True, Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck forced saves out of John Ruddy, the Norwich goalkeeper, soon afterwards and there were late chances for the latter as well.

But for large portions of the game Norwich — in League One action against Oldham Athletic this time two years ago — were the better side and when Grant Holt, the talismanic skipper, turned to rifle the ball past David De Gea with seven minutes remaining, it was no more than the Canaries deserved.

Fergie wasn’t saying otherwise, as De Gea had been busier — and more effective — than at any other time in his short United career and Rio Ferdinand and Jonny Evans had been overworked at the back for a good hour.

De Gea made top quality saves to deny Anthony Pilkington and then Holt in the first half alone.

“I have to say we were lucky, in the sense Norwich had more promise about them,” Ferguson added. “I thought we were lethargic, too casual on the ball.

“Then when we lost the goal, we played brilliantly. That tells you something about the temperament, they do not get nervous and started to up their game, so that augers well for us.

“The players know they should have done better during the game, and that is irrespective of Norwich being the better team. Without Ferdinand, Evans and De Gea, we would have been down. Norwich deserved a point today and it was a great goal they scored.”

Ferguson also described Giggs and Scholes as “the best players this clubs has ever had“, which was almost a throwaway line but given that the pair have won more silverware between them than anyone else, it was also true.

Paul Lambert, the Norwich manager, wasn’t going to argue with his fellow Scotsman either. “The two of them are a huge part of Manchester United’s history,” he said. “They know how to win and they have won major tournaments. They are two fabulous footballers.”

Norwich’s success under Lambert has also been based on a never-give-up attitude and last minute equalisers, or more likely, winners were the Canaries’ party trick during last season’s Championship campaign, as without them they would never have gone up automatically with QPR.

“Manchester United have been doing that for 25 years,” Lambert added. “We have scored a few ourselves since I have been here so I suppose I need to take my own medicine. Now I know what it feels like.

“But we gave it everything and I couldn’t have asked for more. We were excellent but by the end we were running on empty and Manchester United come at you from all angles.”