Wayne Rooney's superb 73rd-minute strike gave 10-man Manchester United a 1-0 victory over Ecuador's LDU in the Club World Cup final on Sunday. United became the first British winners of the FIFA tournament following Liverpool's failure in 2005 when it was beaten 1-0 by Brazil's Sao Paulo. The European champion overcame a moment of madness from defender Nemanja Vidic, sent off four minutes into the second half for elbowing LDU striker Claudio Bieler in the face. The Serb's red card sparked United into life and Rooney smashed home the winner in Yokohama after a magical flick from Cristiano Ronaldo. “We're the best team in the world,” said Rooney, who was named player of the tournament after scoring twice in United's 5-3 semifinal win over Japan's Gamba Osaka. “It's a great achievement for the team and something we're all really proud of. It was a tough game, especially after going down to 10 men.” The England striker added: “It's been a long road. To score the winning goal is a great feeling. I'm sure our fans will be really pleased to be supporting the best team in the world.” Ronaldo, the victim of persistent rough treatment from Libertadores Cup holders LDU, was a constant threat as United dominated a match watched by almost 69,000 fans. Rooney, Park Ji-sung and Carlos Tevez, who was sacrificed for defender Jonny Evans after Vidic's dismissal, all went close in a one-sided first half. United still had to survive late LDU pressure, goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar forced into an excellent fingertip save from Alejandro Manso's fierce drive in the 89th minute. Alex Ferguson's side won the tournament's forerunner, a one-off match between the champions of Europe and South America, with a 1-0 win over Brazilian side Palmeiras in 1999. “We knew they could create problems if we let them,” said United captain Rio Ferdinand. “But we kept them down to very minimum chances.” Earlier, Japan's Gamba Osaka outlasted Mexican powerhouse Pachuca to win 1-0 and claim third place. It's Vietnam vs. Thailand Vietnam pulled off a shock 1-0 win over holder Singapore on Sunday to reach the final of the Southeast Asian championships for the first time in a decade. Second-half substitute Quang The Nguyen scored with 15 minutes remaining of the second leg to stun the pre-tournament favorites and set up a final with three-time champion Thailand. Unbeaten in 20 matches, host Singapore fought desperately for the win after their 0-0 first leg, with prolific striker Noh Alam Shah troubling the Vietnam defense throughout a tense encounter. Last year's top goalscorer and player of the tournament twice came close in the first half and failed to connect on two dangerous crosses that flashed across the Vietnam goal. Vietnam will travel to Bangkok for the first leg of the final on Dec. 24, with the return match in Hanoi on Dec. 28.
