English Premiership: Manchester United's fans will like to think this victory was further sign of a mini-revival, but a truer assessment will come when they face a team that does not roll into Old Trafford with a white flag waving from the top of their bus.
Charlton's slumbering performance reflected badly on the Premiership and even worse on Alan Curbishley, who had to tell off a journalist for yawning in his post-match conference.
Nearly an hour had passed before Charlton had even forced a corner and the match meandered along without them managing a shot on target. Alex Ferguson's team never came close to replicating their most exhilarating peaks but Charlton had neither the wit nor gumption to do anything about it.
As such, an air of inevitability began to engulf Old Trafford from the moment Ryan Giggs slalomed through the defence and, aided by a deflection off Luke Young's kneecap, registered his first league goal of the season, providing it is not taken away from him by the Premiership's Dubious Goals Panel.
Paul Scholes's wispy chin is one for the Dubious Beards Panel but he, like Giggs, prospered against such vapid opponents and Charlton's afternoon became an exercise in damage limitation once the former England midfielder had lashed a wonderfully-taken volley past Dean Kiely, his first goal for seven months.
Scholes was at a loss afterwards to explain a poor 2004 but his relief was tangible. He was 30 last week, which is remarkably young to be retired from international football, but, whatever the rights and wrongs of that decision, the manner in which he hooked in Darren Fletcher's cross indicates that he is close to rediscovering his self-belief.
Likewise, Giggs will have relished coming up against such mediocre opponents in his own battle to convince United's increasingly sceptical supporters that he can still play at the highest level.
Stories about Giggs's future are regurgitated so often that most supporters are accustomed to ignoring them, but the latest speculation has more weight behind it than usual. Giggs, for one, is acutely aware United will seriously consider any offers for him in the January transfer window. It is difficult to imagine him playing for another club but the same was said of David Beckham and Nicky Butt.
Darren Fletcher demonstrated on Saturday why he is so highly regarded by Ferguson while Wayne Rooney supplied the penetrative edge, operating in a roving role that saw him pop up at one stage in the left-back position. Rooney's forward thrusts livened up an afternoon of drowsy satisfaction for the home side, even if he wasted four presentable opportunities.
His finishing skills may have to be fine-tuned but the profligacy scarcely mattered to Ferguson given that this was the first weekend this season that United have taken more points than Arsenal or Chelsea.
Ferguson spoke afterwards about the dourness of visitors to Old Trafford this season - Manchester City also failed to register a single effort on target last month - but his most interesting post-match comments concerned the takeover plans of the American tycoon Malcolm Glazer. "We don't want the club in anyone else's hands," he said.
Ferguson was confirming what everyone knew, but by nailing his colours to the mast he knew the damage it would cause the Glazer camp. The American is looking more and more like a spent force, much like United's opponents on Saturday.
Guardian Service
