Portsmouth 1-4 Manchester United: Rooney hat-trick

[GALLO/GETTY]

A drubbing at the hands of defending champions Manchester United was probably not the start new Portsmouth coach Avram Grant had wanted for his team at Fratton Park.

Wayne Rooney fired home a two-penalty hat-trick as United won 4-1 at Portsmouth to trim Chelsea's English Premier League lead to two points.

Avram Grant took charge of Portsmouth for the first time after being appointed manager following Paul Hart's midweek dismissal.

But Grant - whose first and last matches as Chelsea manager were losses to United - once again had the misfortune to face the 18-time English champions after 18 months away from management.

Ryan Giggs also struck for the champions who now have 31 points from 14 games, two behind Chelsea who play at third-placed Arsenal (25 points) on Sunday.