Wayne Rooney believes Manchester United owes its thrilling derby triumph over neighbor Manchester City to the will to win instilled in the squad by manager Alex Ferguson.

Although the manner of victory was dramatic, Rooney said that such late flurries are so deeply embedded in his club's DNA that they cannot be considered accidental.

"There is desire and passion at the club, and under Sir Alex we never know we're beaten," Rooney said. "It's no fluke how many games we've won late on. We know it could be in injury time or in the first minute. You've got to keep on pushing."

Victory was especially satisfactory for United in the context of last season's encounters with City, which saw Roberto Mancini's men win 6-1 and 1-0 en route to their first league title in 44 years.

"It's a great day for us, to go six points clear and beat our greatest rivals, especially after what happened last year," Rooney said.

"We've waited a long time for this to happen. We know how much it means to everybody at the club, all the fans, and we're delighted."

AFP