Wayne Rooney notched his 99th goal for Manchester United as the Premier League champions opened up their title defence with victory over Birmingham. The striker tapped in after his header from Nani's cross rebounded off the post back into his path on 34 minutes.Ben Foster made a brilliant stop to deny Christian Benitez a goal on his Birmingham debut in the 77th minute. Substitute Michael Owen missed a chance to open his account for United when he shot at Joe Hart in stoppage time. Although not one of their most convincing performances, United created enough chances to emphasise the depth of their attacking options, despite the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid.
