Rooney nets twice as slick Man United come back to beat Stoke

English Premier LeagueSaturday ResultsMan Utd 4 – 2 StokeWest Brom 1 – 2 Man CityTottenham 2 – 4 ChelseaWest Brom 1 – 2 Man CityFulham 1 – 0 Aston VillaLiverpool 1 – 0 ReadingSwansea 2 – 1 WiganWest Ham 4 – 1 SouthamptonNorwich 1 - 0 ArsenalMANCHESTER UNITED recovered from an early Wayne Rooney own goal to defeat Stoke City 4-2 and keep up the chase at the top of the table.Rooney scored his first Premier League goal ten years ago this week but it initially looked like it would be an unhappy anniversary as he headed the ball into his own net from Charlie Adam’s free-kick, under pressure from Ryan Shawcross, to put the Potters in front after just 11 minutes.Stoke did not sit back on their lead and enjoyed a fine spell when they could have struck again, with Adam and Peter Crouch posing problems and David de Gea forced into a couple of decent saves.Manchester United hit back on 27 minutes, though, with Rooney making amends for his earlier mistake by heading in at the right end from Robin van Persie’s sumptuous cross.The Red Devils then took control and, after Danny Welbeck skimmed the top of the crossbar with a rasping long-range effort, Van Persie made it 2-1 with a classy finish as he opened his body up to smartly divert the ball past Asmir Begovic.Danny Welbeck gave United a two-goal cushion immediately after the break when Rooney delivered invitingly from the right and he dived to head home.Michael Kightly reduced Stoke’s arrears just before the hour mark with a shot that crept over the line after hitting the post, although Rio Ferdinand and Jonny Evans should not have allowed him to bulldoze through the United defence.It was left to Rooney to settle United’s nerves as he poked home from close range after Stoke had failed to deal with a corner, and even the introduction of Michael Owen as a substitute against his former club was not enough to change the course of the game.The result keeps United within four points of Chelsea at the Premier League summit, while Stoke remain in the bottom half after suffering their second defeat of the season.Elsewhere, Chelsea and Manchester City produced stirring comebacks as the top three all secured victories in the Premier League. Liverpool ended their Merseyside drought on a day when West Ham, Fulham and Swansea all won.Manchester City are yet to lose this season and they struck deep into injury-time - with ten men - to beat West Brom 2-1 at the Hawthorns. Roberto Mancini had to make do without the injured David Silva, and City’s task was made even more difficult when James Milner was sent off midway through the first half.However, after Shane Long had given the Baggies a second-half lead, Edin Dzeko stepped off the bench to net a match-winning brace for the champions.Juan Mata struck twice in three second-half minutes as Chelsea came from behind to beat Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 at White Hart Lane.Gary Cahill gave the Blues the lead in the first period, seizing on William Gallas’ poor defensive header to fire a first-time volley into the roof of the net, but Gallas made amends shortly after half-time, steering in from close range at the far post having collected Jan Vertonghen’s hooked centre.Jermain Defoe then turned the game on its head, diverting Aaron Lennon’s mishit shot beyond Petr Cech and into the back of the net. That was the cue for Mata to swing the momentum back towards his side, first with a 20-yard drive following another poorly-directed clearance from Gallas and then with a fine finish after a brilliant defence-splitting pass from Eden Hazard.Mata also made Chelsea’s fourth, robbing Kyle Walker before squaring for substitute Daniel Sturridge.Liverpool ended their wait for a first home league win under Brendan Rodgers, beating Reading 1-0 at Anfield. The Reds last triumphed on home soil in league competition on May 8 against Chelsea, but Raheem Sterling’s strike finally gave their fans something to sing about.Rodgers went into the game without fresh injury absentees Fabio Borini and Pepe Reina, but his side coped well with those setbacks as they moved up to 11th in the table. The opener saw Sterling become the club’s second youngest scorer behind Michael Owen as he ran onto Luis Suarez’s flick, taking a touch before drilling into the far corner.It was fitting that Suarez was the provider as the Uruguayan once again caused chaos in the opposition defence, but it was the same old story for Liverpool as a plethora of chances went astray. In the end they were grateful to a couple of fantastic saves from Brad Jones as Reading threatened to nick a point in the second half.Southampton stays dangerously poised above the drop zone after they lost 4-1 to West Ham at Upton Park. The result leaves Saints on four points in 17th place in the table after strikes from Mark Noble (2), Kevin Nolan and Modibo Maiga.After a dour first half, West Ham exploded from the opening whistle of the second, netting first when Noble’s dangerous free-kick found its way past Artur Boruc under pressure from James Collins, and then adding a second a minute later when Nolan tapped in at the far post.Adam Lallana gave Saints hope with 25 minutes remaining, but Noble converted from the spot to kill the game off 18 minutes from time before Maiga added the extras.Paul Lambert is a manager firmly under pressure after Aston Villa were beaten 1-0 by Fulham at Craven Cottage. Villa are only two points clear of the bottom three after winning one of their opening eight games, with Chris Baird doing the damage for Fulham with an 84-minute equaliser.And in the other 3pm kick-off, Swansea claimed a 2-1 win over Wigan to move into the top half of the table. Pablo Hernandez and Michu did the job for Swansea in the second half, although Emmerson Boyce’s cheeky back-heeled effort made for a tight finish.Agencies