UNITED fans joke there are only two teams in Manchester - United and United reserves . . . but Ipswich can't see the funny side.

It might be an old gag, but it rang true as Sir Alex Ferguson gave his ''stiffs'' a run-out, and they gave the UEFA Cup contenders the runaround.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was handed a rare start and bagged two, Ronny Johnsen stepped in to score the opener and Andy Cole capped an excellent display with a deserved goal.

Ipswich had no answer to a United side which still had enough quality, even with Ruud van Nistelrooy, Juan Sebastian Veron, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville on the bench, and David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Wes Brown and Laurent Blanc rested completely.

If Fergie had chucked that little lot in, the 9-0 mauling of six years ago might have been eclipsed!

There were a few groans around the Theatre of Dreams when the team was announced, with only Fabien Barthez and Roy Keane remaining from the side on European duty against Lille on Tuesday night.

Shock start for May

David May was drafted in for only his second Premiership start in 28 months, the flanks were occupied by stand-ins Luke Chadwick and Quinton Fortune, and Solskjaer and Cole formed the strike partnership.

There was no need to rest skipper Keane - he will get an enforced three-match break after the La Coruna trip thanks to his poor behaviour at Newcastle last week.

And he was the key to this win, sitting deep in midfield and controlling the game to allow Chadwick and Fortune to spark around him.

A low-key start from the Reds had Fergie warming up Scholes and Veron after just five minutes - and the lads out on the field took the hint.

The opener on 13 minutes had an air of controversy as Solskjaer's arrowing corner found his countryman Johnsen at the near post for a bullet header which keeper Matteo Sereni clawed away, only to see the linesman signalling it had crossed the line.

The two Scandinavians embraced in celebration, and there was ''Norway'' back for Ipswich after that!

Ipswich started to come apart at the seams, handing possession to the buoyant Reds, and Fortune whistled in a 30-yarder which Sereni acrobatically tipped over the bar.

The second goal came on 20 minutes - and it was all started by Chadwick's industry deep in his own half. The perky youngster slid in to dispossess Jim Magilton and Keane picked up the pieces to feed Solskjaer on halfway.

Second strike

He sent Cole racing away on the left and hared after him, and when Cole's shot was saved by Sereni, Solskjaer was perfectly placed to knock home the rebound.

With just 20 minutes on the clock, Ipswich were struggling and United were cruising - and it did not make for a great spectacle.

In fact, a few fans might have nodded off in the autumn sunshine as United strolled through the afternoon, occasionally upping the tempo just to keep everyone interested.

Fergie flexed his muscle in the second half, bringing on Scholes for the last 26 minutes and Veron for the last 14.

The arrival of the Argentinian, to a huge reception from the fans, perked things up again and provided the Reds with a dimension which had been missing - his first action was to rake a 50-yard pass out to Fortune on the right wing and his lay-back almost handed Cole a goal he desperately wanted.

Barthez made his only save of the day eight minutes from time as sub Jermaine Wright's far-post cross found Marcus Stewart unmarked and the French keeper

But it was United who were intent on a big finish and in the last minute of normal time Scholes slipped a lovely little ball through for Cole and he fired it home for a goal which he thoroughly deserved.

And still United were not done as another inventive Veron pass out of defence sent Cole zeroing in on goal before sliding the ball out to Solskjaer.

With players queuing in the middle, the goal-grabber had no thought of crossing, even from a tight angle, and blasted his shot high into the net past the startled Sereni.

After a shaky start by their standards, does this win suggest it's business as usual now for the Reds, or do you still have some doubts about the defence or system? Let us know your views