Sir Alex Ferguson's defending champions have struggled for form and goals over the first month of the season and they appeared to be heading for their third draw in six matches as Everton matched them for long periods at Goodison Park.
However with seven minutes remaining, central defender Nemanja Vidic lost his marker and flicked a deft header home from a Nani corner to clinch all three points.
"We are delighted with the win because people will see a very improved Everton this season. Teams will find it very hard coming here," Ferguson said.
"Nemanja Vidic is a marvellous defender but he can get a goal as well. It's a bit of a concern that we are not scoring as many goals as we want, but until we get everyone back we will play like this.
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"We are delighted with the win because people will see a very improved Everton this season. Teams will find it very hard coming here."
Sir Alex Ferguson,
Manchester United manager |
"We are determined, we have a good team ethic, we have got a good shape and we had good passing. We will work away and this is a very good result."
United's victory came at a cost as defender Mikael Silvestre was stretchered off with suspected knee ligament damage which could rule him out for a lengthy spell, while Cristiano Ronaldo was booked for diving on his return from a three-match ban.
Ferguson opted against risking England striker Wayne Rooney, who is set to return to action after recovering from the broken metatarsal he suffered on the opening day of the season.
Liverpool held, Arsenal go top
Meanwhile at Fratton Park, Benitez's fears that his players could struggle after a grueling international double-header week proved well-founded as Liverpool turned in lackluster performance and were lucky to get away with any points at all.
Jose Reina, Liverpool keeper, kept his side in the match after he saved a first-half penalty from Portsmouth's Nigerian playmaker Nwankwo Kanu.
Later on Saturday Arsenal went to the top of the Premier League after coming from behind to beat north London rivals Tottenham 3-1.
The victory put Arsene Wenger's men alone on top of the table, two points clear of Premiership rivals Liverpool and Manchester United and Chelsea.
Gareth Bale's superb first-half free-kick put Spurs on track to claim their first derby win in eight years at White Hart Lane, but Arsenal fought back to continue their strong start to the season.
The Gunners stormed home to score three goals in the final 25 minutes of the match, with Emmanuel Adebayor scoring twice either side of a Cesc Fabregas strike.
Other results
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Dean Ashton, left, and Carlton Cole, centre,
celebrate a third for West Ham [GALLO/GETTY] |
Elsewhere, Birmingham, Sunderland and West Ham all recorded home wins while Wigan and Fulham shared the points in a 1-1 draw at the JJB Stadium.
Olivier Kapo, French midfielder, was Birmingham's match-winner with the only goal against second-from-bottom Bolton, while a Jason Koumas penalty allowed Wigan to salvage a point at home to Fulham, who had taken an early lead through American striker Clint Dempsey.
Sunderland put some breathing space between themselves and the relegation zone with a 2-1 win over Reading that ended a run of three successive defeats for Roy Keane's side after Kenwyne Jones scored just before the half hour mark on his home debut for the club.
Ross Wallace doubled the lead for the home side, before Dave Kitson headed in a late consolation effort for the visitors.
At Upton Park, Dean Ashton scored for the first time since the 2006 FA Cup final as West Ham climbed into the top half of the table by beating Middlesbrough 3-0.
Asthon's strike was preceded by a Lee Bowyer volley and an own goal by Luke Young.
In the late match, Blackburn held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw at Stamford Bridge.