Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar praised Sunderland midfielder Steed Malbranque's performance for their 0-0 draw yesterday.

Van der Sar was largely employed by marshalling his defence rather than repelling shots, but he was forced into a fine early save by Malbranque, and the Dutchman enjoyed outfoxing his former Fulham cohort.

"It was a good run that he made," Van der Sar told MUTV. "He's a technical player and I still know him well from our days at Fulham and he's never one that shoots blind, for example, so I just waited and managed to block the effort."