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The most exciting Premier League race in years took another unexpected turn yesterday as Arsenal and Manchester United both actually won. While the Gunners went 2-0 up at half-time, staged their predictable wobble (twice) before overcoming Aston Villa 4-2, United stepped up to the plate with a 7-1 mauling of Blackburn Rovers. Whatever next? Chelsea beating Newcastle?

The win was a welcome return to goalscoring form for Dimitar Berbatov, their skilful Bulgarian striker, who faded into obscurity after scoring a hat-trick against Liverpool and has in the interim been linked with a potential move to Juventus in the January transfer window.

His five-goal performance against Blackburn will certainly have been noted by the Bianconeri, who were held to their third 1-1 draw in four matches yesterday, and some might say that United could do worse than offload their streaky striker while his stock is high. The Juve deal will be dead in the water now, though, given that United have signed Danish goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard; any swoop for Berbatov was to be based on the high-earning Gianluigi Buffon moving in the opposite direction and United no longer need a shot-stopper.

So Berbatov will stay, to score yet more goals in maybe another 11 matches time, the cynics will carp. The 29-year-old is often criticised for not scoring regularly enough - and he doesn't. In his four previous seasons in England he has only once managed to score more than 12 league goals ― in 2007/08 when he managed 15 for Tottenham. Doubtless Sir Alex Ferguson was hoping to rediscover the player who netted 57 Bundesliga goals in his final three seasons with Bayer Leverkusen when he shelled out £30.75 million for an international striker approaching his prime. But Berbatov is more than just a striker - in fact he isn't really a striker in the traditional sense at all. He is a naturally gifted footballer whose natural diffidence, which is sometimes mistaken for indifference, has too often seen him overshadowed by big players with big egos, such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.

Berbatov has been happy to play a supporting role to these stars and developed into an unselfish all-round team player who thrives on goal making as much as goal-getting, and in the modern game, particularly in a free-flowing team such as United, who often play one up front or a withdrawn striker in a two-pronged attack, an assist is as important as a goal. Berbatov turned provider in 10 league matches last season (he scored 12 league goals).

The other point to make about Berbatov, who has 11 league goals to his name and is 4.2 to finish top goalscorer this season, is that he has forged an excellent understanding with Rooney over the last three seasons. It's no coincidence that he hadn't scored since last partnering the England striker, who like Berbatov, is also as comfortable at creating as he is scoring (indeed the calibre of Rooney can be measured by his four assists in five league starts this campaign and, better still, the seven assists he created to complement his 26 goals last season).

The suggestion is then that United are only just getting their motor running. They have been playing badly without once losing a league game and are ready to roll now that Rooney and Berbatov are dovetailing once more. Of course it isn't just about the front two - Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic are also getting reacquainted at the back and the unsung Park Ji-Sung has contributed hugely to improved displays, after being given a regular run in the side following injury to Ryan Giggs.

United have enjoyed four wins and two draws with the Korean in the side, with Park providing three goals, an assist and tireless energy to a United side now 3.15 to win the league. Those odds are not unreasonable given that Chelsea 2.3 appear to be self-imploding, Arsenal 6.2 can't defend for toffee and Manchester City 15.0 are the most expensively-assembled crown green bowls team known to man.

On the other hand, should we really be getting sucked in by a performance that was as much down to the abject defending of an injury-ravaged Blackburn side as it was United's delightful football? United were good, particularly Nani, Rooney and Berbatov, but then most Championship sides would have beaten Blackburn yesterday (12.0 to be relegated) so complicit were they in their own downfall.

The fact is, anything other than a United win yesterday would have been deemed a shock result - and perhaps even Sam Allardyce was trying to make a very convincing case for his new employers to buy some new players in January. It certainly wasn't a convincing case for prospective new employers. "I am not suited to Bolton or Blackburn," said Big Sam in September. "I would be more suited to Inter Milan or Real Madrid. I would win the double or the league every time." After Saturday's performance, Rafa and José won't be losing any sleep.


By Richard Aikman

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