Fernandes for United pulls the strings after Ronaldo

A subject went unaddressed in Erik ten Hag's programme notes. Someone went unmentioned. There was an 81-word paragraph on the following page; on the off-chance anyone who had turned up at Old Trafford under the illusion that Cristiano Ronaldo still played for Manchester United, it alerted them to his departure, if not the circumstances of perhaps the most explosive exit since Roy Keane's in 2005. The brevity was telling.

- RICHARD JOLLY

It was scarcely a tribute but then perhaps Ronaldo's final act at United was to mean that, if not quite airbrushed from history, he was certainly consigned to the past. Supporters chorused for the Glazers to go; there were no nostalgic chants of "Viva Ronaldo".

Instead, life after Ronaldo began with an illustration of how United can benefit from the departure of the scorer of 819 goals in the most prolific career of all.

Beating Burnley was expected; home ties against lower-league opp nts ought to be won. But liberated individuals and a more fluid team offered a glimpse of the type of football Ten Hag wants. Ronaldo's second coming became a lost year for United.

If, for some, the aim is to rewind the clock to rediscover form they showed for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, now Ten Hag can shape a future.

Bruno Fernandes looks a dual beneficiary of Ronaldo's fall from grace. United feels his team again, Portugal for the first time. He was terrific in three of his four starts in the World Cup and still struck the bar in the other. He served as the playmaker-in-chief on his return to club duty.