Manchester United: Michael Carrick gave fans a ‘taste’ of the Sir Alex Ferguson-Wayne Rooney era

After a scoreless first half, Cameroonian striker Mbeumo – returning from the Africa Cup of Nations – put United ahead, and Dorjo doubled the lead 11 minutes later.

Rooney said this was the “best performance” he had seen from United for a long time.

“I think what Michael did with the team was not rocket science. It was a little tweak in terms of what he did in terms of the formation,” the former England striker said.

“I think everyone is talking a lot about Ruben Amorim’s formation in the back three and how he fits into Manchester United as well.

“He’s changed that, but if you go back to the last podcast we did when I talked about what United need to do, it’s really simple, it’s running and working hard. It’s been very refreshing to see the players doing that.

“I thought Amad and Durgu on the wings were excellent, and the work rate they put in to help the full-backs reached a combined form, which is what I talked about, and they beat Man City on the break.”

Amorim was sent off on January 5 and Rooney said United’s win over City was “night and day from what we’ve seen” under the Portuguese.

Rooney added: “You can feel it from the fans too, the difference in the energy of the team, the confidence, the belief, the calmness when handling the ball at the right times.

“It was night and day from what we saw, so it was a good day. It reminded me, when you talk about the DNA of Manchester United, that was what it was all about…

“Work hard, run for your teammate, get back in shape, get tough and play against you… [and then] When you get a chance to move forward.”