Stoke 1-1 Man Utd: Wayne Rooney breaks goalscoring record to claim injury-time point

Stoke 1-1 Man Utd
Stoke 1-1 Man Utd

Wayne Rooney's record-breaking free-kick in injury time earned Manchester United a 1-1 draw at Stoke on Saturday.

Substitute Rooney hit a fine effort into the top corner from the edge of the box in the 94th minute, his 250th Manchester United goal, to break Sir Bobby Charlton's long-standing goalscoring record.

Stoke had taken the lead in the first half through Juan Mata's unfortunate own goal after Erik Pieters' cross from the left byline deflected off his foot, before Mata missed a fine opportunity from six yards at the other end.

Rooney came on with just over 20 minutes remaining
Rooney came on with just over 20 minutes remaining

United relentlessly pressed in the second half, hitting the bar through Jesse Lingard and going close on several other occasions, before Rooney stepped up to slot home a superb free-kick.

Wayne Rooney says it
Wayne Rooney says it's a huge honour to eclipse Sir Bobby Charlton's record and become Manchester United's all-time leading goalscorer

The 31-year-old hit his 250th goal in 546 games having joined United from Everton in 2004, having played 212 games fewer than Charlton's total.

The result means United are now unbeaten in 17 games in all competitions and sit sixth, while Stoke are in ninth.

Stoke celebrate going 1-0 up at the Bet365 Stadium through Juan Mata
Stoke celebrate going 1-0 up at the Bet365 Stadium through Juan Mata's own goal

United made four changes from the side that drew 1-1 with Liverpool last weekend, reintroducing Chris Smalling, Marouane Fellaini, Mata and Daley Blind, while Stoke were unchanged.

The hosts, who had won their last two Premier League games, started the faster of the two sides, and were ahead on 19 minutes after a frantic opening.

Jose Mourinho says Wayne Rooney is a club legend after he broke Sir Bobby Charlton’s goalscoring record
Jose Mourinho says Wayne Rooney is a club legend after he broke Sir Bobby Charlton’s goalscoring record

After Peter Crouch had dragged Smalling out of position, Joe Allen slipped in Marko Arnautovic, who then played Pieters down the byline, before the left-back's centre deflected off Mata and wrong-footed David De Gea at his near post.

Mata missed a clear chance for United in the first half
Mata missed a clear chance for United in the first half

Stoke continued to frustrate United for the first half-hour, but Jose Mourinho's side began creating chances as the half wore on.

Mata's afternoon turned from bad to worse as he missed a clear opportunity at the far post with the goal gaping following some unselfish play by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who had got in-behind the Stoke defence.

Mark Hughes says there was nothing Stoke could do to stop Wayne Rooney’s equaliser in their draw with Man Utd
Mark Hughes says there was nothing Stoke could do to stop Wayne Rooney’s equaliser in their draw with Man Utd

Henrikh Mkhitaryan then played in Ibrahimovic on the left of the area, but again the Swede chose to centre when shooting may have been the better option, allowing Bruno Martins Indi to block.

Mata miscues an overhead kick attempt in the Stoke box
Mata miscues an overhead kick attempt in the Stoke box

Pogba stung the hands of Lee Grant in the Stoke goal with a volley from Blind's corner, and United would have been disappointed to hear Mark Clattenburg's half-time whistle.

But they picked up where they left off in the second half, having the majority of possession in the Stoke half, but without creating chances until the final 15 minutes.

Matt Le Tissier says Manchester United deserved at least a point against Stoke and was full of superlatives over Wayne Rooney’s superb record-breaking goal
Matt Le Tissier says Manchester United deserved at least a point against Stoke and was full of superlatives over Wayne Rooney’s superb record-breaking goal

They did have a penalty appeal turned down, with Mark Clattenburg waving play on as the ball bounced up onto Pieters' hand from Mata's touch.

Rooney curls home a late free-kick to break Stoke hearts
Rooney curls home a late free-kick to break Stoke hearts

Rooney, who had been brought on with just over 20 minutes remaining, saw his cross fall to fellow sub Marcus Rashford, who guided an effort inches high and wide of Grant's goal.

Rooney then miscued a header wide after Jesse Lingard's flick-on in the box, while Lingard then hit the bar with a fierce effort from 20 yards, before United finally got their leveller in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

After Allen had tripped Rashford on the corner of the box to the left, Rooney stepped up and found the top right corner as the players in the penalty area expected a cross.

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As Wayne Rooney broke Bobby Charlton's Manchester United goalscoring record, we take a look back at some of his best in United's colours.

Player ratings

Stoke: Grant (7); Johnson (7), Shawcross (7), M. Indi (6), Pieters (7); Adam (7), Whelan (7); Shaqiri (6), Allen (7), Arnautovic (7); Crouch (6).

Subs: Afellay (6), Imbula (NA), Ngoy (6).

Man Utd: De Gea (6), Valencia (6), Jones (6), Smalling (6), Blind (6), Fellaini (5), Herrera (6), Mata (5), Pogba (6), Mkhitaryan (7), Ibrahimovic (6)

Subs: Lingard (6) , Rashford (6), Rooney (7)

Man of the match: Ryan Shawcross

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