Manchester Utd 2 West Ham Utd 0: CRISTIANO RONALDO began another hugely satisfying evening's work by collecting the Golden Boot for his 42 goals last season and, after another demonstration of his scoring prowess, it ended with his name being sung with more vigour than at any other time since his summer dalliance with Real Madrid.
There will be always be some Manchester United supporters who struggle to forgive and forget, but as long as Ronaldo can strike this amount of fear in opposition defences he will inevitably succeed in winning over the majority.
Another two goals were served up here last night by a player who seems determined to restore some of his lost popularity.
Ronaldo struck twice in the opening 30 minutes and, after that, it was just a question of how generous the home side would be against such shockingly feeble opponents. Had Ferguson's men played in the second half as they did the first, a thrashing could have been meted out but, in the end, the champions settled for Ronaldo's individual contribution on a night that will otherwise be remembered for the brilliance with which Dimitar Berbatov set up the second goal.
The last time Ronaldo scored at Old Trafford, in the 4-0 defeat of West Bromwich Albion earlier this month, his celebration - if celebration is the right word - was peculiar, to say the least. Since then, every amateur psychologist has been debating whether he is truly happy at Old Trafford after missing out on his "dream" move to Real Madrid over the summer.
When he opened the scoring here, however, he left the crowd in no doubt about his feelings. The goal had been set up by Nani, spotting his fellow Portugal international across the penalty area in the midst of one of those long spells when West Ham's players must have been enveloped by a deep sense of foreboding.
Ronaldo was on to it in a flash, lashing a left-foot shot into the corner of Robert Green's net. Old Trafford waited to see how he would react and, after a dramatic pause that Robert De Niro would have been proud of, there was an explosion of unrestrained joy. Point made.
That was in the 14th minute and, from that moment onwards, Gianfranco Zola must have been hoping the final whistle could somehow be brought forward. Zola won his first two league games after taking over at West Ham but this is a distinctly ordinary team and a fourth consecutive defeat was all but confirmed in that moment, on the half-hour, when Berbatov's unique brilliance set up Ronaldo for the second goal.
The biggest compliment that can be paid to Berbatov is that, even in a stadium with the nostalgia and rich memories of Old Trafford, it was difficult to remember a more sublime piece of penalty-area skill. The Bulgarian had done well even to keep Anderson's ball in play, catching it a few inches from going out for a goal-kick, but it was what followed that took the breath away.
In one sublime movement, Berbatov had spun, pirouetted and danced away from James Collins. The defender was still coming to his senses as Berbatov advanced towards goal and slid a beautifully weighted pass across the six-yard area. Ronaldo, alert as always, got there ahead of Herita Ilunga, and guided the ball into the net for his fifth goal of the season. To compound West Ham's misery, Valon Behrami was taken off on a stretcher after falling awkwardly towards the end of the first half.
Thereafter, with the match already won, the hosts slowed down but it was still virtually one-way traffic and, for long spells, United's full-backs, Patrice Evra and Rafael da Silva, were playing more like wingers. West Ham could not muster anything more noteworthy than a couple of long-range efforts and it must be a cause of extreme concern for Zola that his players did so little to trouble Tomasz Kuszczak, United's reserve goalkeeper.
• Guardian Service
MANCHESTER UNITED: Kuszczak, Rafael Da Silva (Neville 81), Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Ronaldo, Fletcher (Carrick 69), Anderson, Nani (Rooney 70), Tevez, Berbatov. Subs Not Used: Foster, Giggs, Park, O'Shea. Booked: Evra. Goals: Ronaldo 14, 30.
WEST HAM: Green, Faubert, Collins, Upson, Ilunga, Behrami (Boa Morte 44), Bowyer (Sears 69), Mullins, Etherington (Collison 46), Di Michele, Bellamy. Subs Not Used: Lastuvka, Lopez, Davenport, Reid. Booked: Collison, Collins.
Referee: Peter Walton(Northamptonshire).
