Celtic ... 0 Manchester Utd ... 3The PR is falling on deaf ears. An apparently prestigious friendly attracted a relatively meagre crowd by local standards in Glasgow last night, Celtic fans refusing to be fooled into believing their own side and Manchester United would be showcasing anything other than their second-string teams. However, it is the spin from the visitors' camp which still fuels the doubters.
Alex Ferguson arrived here having dismissed concerns about an ineffective summer in the transfer market with a shrug and a smile. "Some people are trying to make it into a desperate situation," he had said.
"Of course we are working on a couple of things but if I were to start the season with all the players I've got available, all fit, I don't think the supporters would be disappointed. Neither would I."
Even with Paul Scholes revelling amidst the youngsters, that myth was dispelled on balmy Clydeside. No more than 300 United fans had travelled to this fixture but those who had were bellowing "Fergie, sign some players" before the quarter-hour mark had been reached.
They were hardly appeased at their side's busy dominance against a Celtic team containing only five players likely to start their opening Scottish Premierleague fixture against Kilmarnock on Saturday.
By the 20 minute mark the chants from the away fans had become support for Ruud van Nistelrooy. That will have annoyed Ferguson, though he will busy himself in pursuit of Tottenham's Michael Carrick and in search of a striker to fill the Dutchman's shoes.
His protracted move away from United took another twist yesterday when Real Madrid returned with an improved £10.3 million offer for the striker.
Replacing a player who has contributed 150 goals in 219 appearances in the past five years represents a daunting challenge, particularly when the first-choice, Fernando Torres, is intent on remaining at Atletico Madrid. Ten United players involved in the latter stages of the World Cup finals were absent here, some braced to return to action at Macclesfield on Monday night, with other notable absentees - including Ryan Giggs, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and John O'Shea - nursing knocks and strains back home. Van Nistelrooy was never likely to be risked with a potential move to come.
There was encouragement here in their absence. Scholes, operating in a deep-lying midfield role, busied himself effectively and forced Artur Boruc to tip over a dipping shot eight minutes in. From the corner, the 18-year-old centre-back Jonathan Evans volleyed United ahead, with Lee Martin and Giuseppe Rossi then missing straightforward shots.
Celtic were becalmed, their strike pairing of Kenny Miller and Maciej Zurawski still a work in progress. Aiden McGeady, capitalising on an Alan Thompson lay-off, should have restored parity before the interval but shot wide.
Yet so sloppy were the hosts that the better opportunities remained United's, with Scholes duly capping his own progressive display with his first goals since St Stephen's Day last year. The former England midfielder scuttled into the six-yard box to convert Kieran Richardson's vicious free-kick, then prodded in from close range with six minutes remaining.
The margin of victory reflected United's ascendancy, though greater tests lie ahead for Ferguson.
