After sealing yet another come-from-behind victory, Manchester United will look to cement their top spot in the English Premier League with Sir Alex Ferguson hoping for a much more straightforward outing against West Ham Wednesday.
United have gone down nine times in 13 Premier League games this season, and more often than not, they have turned that deficit to three points.
However, despite repeatedly mentioning the problem, there will come a time when those giveaways will come to haunt them, if it continues in the same mould; and with the match being at Old Trafford, Ferguson will demand a much better defensive display from his side.
There is no doubting United's prowess going forward, with Ferguson having so many options on the bench if things are not going quite as planned, perfectly illustrated when Anderson came on as a substitute and completely turned the game around, with another sub Javier Hernandez also getting in on the scoresheet.
That outstanding second-half display from Anderson will earn him a place in United's starting lineup against West Ham. "I thought Ando won the game for us," Ferguson told the club's official website. "His performance was outstanding. He took the game by the scruff of the neck and he was so positive and determined in his play that he picks himself on Wednesday.
United, however, will be without winger Nani, while Antonio Valencia remains doubtful. Their defensive worries, injury wise, however, have been sorted out with most players, barring Nemanja Vidic, returning from injury.
"We'll see what Antonio is like today and tomorrow," Ferguson added. "Nani is still going to be out (but) Chris Smalling and Phil Jones were on the bench on Saturday and they're available.
"It's good to have them as backup and in the back four things are much healthier. We've got plenty of options in the midfield and up front -- it's just the two wide positions (where we have problems).
Mark Noble (suspension) and Yossi Benayoun will miss the game along with long-term injury victims Jack Collison and Ricardo Vaz Te.
West Ham, however, will be happy to see their main striker Andy Carroll get off the mark, albeit in a 3-1 loss to Tottenham. Carroll, on his day, can bully any defense and the United back-four will be bracing themselves up for a tough physical evening.
"It was about time, to be honest," Carroll told the club's official website after scoring his first goal for West Ham. "I'm just grateful to have got off the mark and hopefully there will be more to come this week.
"We have got a tough week, obviously, with Manchester United and then Chelsea and Liverpool coming up. It'll be tough so we just have to focus on Wednesday.
"Of course, the big games are what everyone looks forward to ... so we're going to have to concentrate 100 percent on Wednesday, which is going to be another tough game."
Expected lineups: Manchester United: De Gea; Evra, Evans, Ferdinand, Rafael; Carrick, Anderson; Young, Rooney, Welbeck, Van Persie.
West Ham: Jaaskelainen; O'Brien, Tomkins, Reid, McCartney; O'Neil, Diame; Jarvis, Nolan, Maiga; Carroll.
Prediction: 2-0 to United
