Manchester United's defence of their European title began to hint at competency and cohesion in Austria last night with the comprehensive beating of admittedly poor opposition. But the victory came at a cost with Roy Keane going off injured after 61 minutes with a recurrence of a knee injury. The United midfielder is now doubtful for United's game with Southampton on Saturday and also Ireland's Euro 2000 clash with Macedonia on October 9th.
Bigger, far more demanding, tasks lie ahead for United, but after carelessly dropping two points against Croatia Zagreb in their opening game, the result - and some aspects of a professional performance - were both welcome and overdue.
As Sir Alex Ferguson remarked during the early stages of last season's triumphant campaign, thoroughbreds quite often fall prey to the most innocuous looking of hurdles. But not last night.
Sturm are an ambitious and progressively minded club yet one which, rather sweetly, can still boast a neat and tidy line in humility and realism.
Just as they were 12 months ago, they are simply happy to be involved, arguably the great competition's one true Cinderella club.
Sturm's Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium is a fittingly bold and brassy tribute to Graz's most famous prodigal son, a sort of Deva Stadium with icing.
Icing yes, bananas, no. Last night's game went ahead only after what was described locally as the great fruit fiasco.
In common with most nutrition-conscious sportsmen, the United players like to devour bananas before kick-off, but after a local supermarket could offer up just one miserable bunch, the Sturm vice-president, Dr Peder Imrei, was reduced to scurrying around back streets before locating a three-kilogram consignment.
United sought to dampen Sturm's predictable early enthusiasm by way of jealously protecting possession, a ploy that was particularly successful as their opponents were prone to rendering their midfield redundant by using the long-ball game.
But even rudimentary tactics can sometimes return handsome dividends and Sturm's unsubtle rushes did cause a measure of concern, initially at least.
Early on, there was a surprising lack of width to much of United's football, something that Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke attempted to rectify by dropping back, stealing the ball and advancing at pace.
It did, inadvertently, provide a means to an end. After Cole had been brought down just outside the area, David Beckham swept his freekick into a wall of trembling Austrian flesh.
Foolishly, indeed fatally, Sturm believed the danger to be over and as they stood motionless Keane unleashed a fearsome volley from 25 yards that found a gap between the crossbar and the top of Kazimierz Sidorczuk's head.
Faced by the prospect of another unrewarding night on the big stage, Sturm flirted with the idea of complete capitulation. United added two more goals in two minutes after the half-hour. After Yorke had arrived first to head home a Beckham corner, Cole was gifted far too much time and space inside the area and scored with a crisp, low drive.
Beckham, though, was not satisfied. Two minutes into the second half, the childish one was again enveloped by a red mist.
Frustrated at his inability to deliver even a simple pass with any degree of competence, Beckham lashed out, kicking Tomislav Kocijan to the ground. But astonishingly the officials did not see the offence.
Sturm briefly hinted at a comeback. It should have been met with a tangible reward after 55 minutes when the Austrians were awarded an uncontested penalty after Phil Neville had upended Jocijan. But nerves got the better of Ivica Vastic and he drove his kick tamely into the body of Raimond van der Gouw.
United boss Alex Ferguson said: "Roy Keane felt his knee and that's why we took him off. Hopefully he will be fit for Saturday but you don't know."
Ferguson refused to run down the quality of the Austrian outfit after the game.
He said: "I think they are a fair side. I think they have good quality in their side. I don't think they have a great deal of pace about them in the last attacking third.
"They did produce a lot of good passing that penetrated us and I think we were a bit fortunate not to lose goals."
SK Sturm Graz: Sidorczuk, Feldhofer (Korsos 71), Foda, Neukirchner, Martens, Mahlich (Reinmayr 74), Schupp, Prilasnig (Kutsupias 72), Vastic, Kocijan, Strafner. Subs Not Used: Schicklgruber, Bochtler, Szabics, Pantelic. Booked: Mahlich, Foda.
Manchester Utd: Van Der Gouw, Neville, Berg, Stam, Irwin, Beckham, Keane (Wilson 61), Scholes, Cruyff (Sheringham 67), Cole (Solskjaer 76), Yorke. Subs Not Used: Bosnich, Clegg, Fortune, Greening. Booked: Beckham. Goals: Keane 17, Yorke 31, Cole 33.
Referee: A Trentalange (Italy).
