Sir Alex Ferguson praises his young defenders

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has praised his young defenders Chris Smalling, Jonny Evans and Rafael.

All three players impressed in last night's 1-0 victory over West Ham United.

The Scot paid tribute to the way that his back line dealt with the Hammers, whom he described as a "handful".

"Chris [Smalling] came into the team and did very well after a few weeks out and Jonny Evans was magnificent," said Ferguson.

"There were a lot of plus points tonight, particularly with the defending because you have to against West Ham because they are such a handful. We had to be at our best for the whole 90 minutes.

"Rafael is maturing, he's 22 years of age now. He came here as a young boy, he was in the first team at 17-18, and made a lot of rash mistakes because he was such an enthusiastic boy. He is maturing and learning now."

Ferguson's side travel to Reading for the late kickoff this Saturday.