Stunning Ronaldo hat-trick sinks Tottenham and lifts Old Trafford gloom
Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo (centre) celebrates scoring his hat trick goal and his sides third goal of the game during the Premier League match at Old Trafford, Manchester. Picture: Martin Rickett/PA Wire.
ONE football legend, the NFL star Tom Brady, was on hand as another, Cristiano Ronaldo, produced a stunning hat-trick display that rekindled Manchester United’s hopes of a top-four finish.
The quarterback, who recently retired from the Glazer family’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was a guest of honour for a thrilling encounter that saw United take the lead on three occasions.
When Harry Maguire turned Sergio Reguilon’s 72nd-minute cross into his own goal to make it 2-2 it had appeared that Ralf Rangnick’s team was facing yet more frustration.
But nine minutes from time, Ronaldo battled away from Matt Doherty to convert Alex Telles’s corner with an incredible headed finish that earned his side three badly-needed points.
The memories of the derby humiliation at City last Sunday ran deep but the first Ronaldo goal, after 12 minutes, quickly dulled that pain.
It came from an astounding 25-yard strike from the Portuguese striker after Fred had neatly flicked a pass from Raphael Varane into his path.
With Eric Dier failing to close him down, Ronaldo deposited just his second goal of 2022 past the diving Hugo Lloris, high into the top left-hand corner.
The lead was just about deserved for the Reds who thought they might have had a penalty after nine minutes when Jadon Sancho’s cross struck Dier’s arm.
And, after taking the lead, Fred again sparked an attack with a pass which allowed Paul Pogba to spin away from Rodrigo Bentancur and shoot just wide from the edge of the area.
But, as they had done on their last visit to Manchester when winning at City last month, Spurs looked dangerous on the counter-attack - especially Heung-Min Son.
He was involved in playing in Ben Davies for an “equaliser,” shortly after the Ronaldo goal but the wing-back was clearly offside.
And Son’s 26th-minute corner was flicked on by Bentancur and Dier’s back-post header had to be cleared off the line by Diogo Dalot.
It was hardly surprising, therefore, when Spurs did finally level, from Kane’s 35th-minute penalty.
Dejan Kulusevski made a devastating run to the by-line and crossed, with Telles inexplicably sticking out an arm and conceding a spot kick which Kane brutally planted into the bottom left of the home goal.
But the parity lasted just two minutes before Ronaldo scored his second goal of a devastating half after Nemanja Matic’s pass sent Sancho speeding down the left.
His perfectly-timed cross was turned in from six yards by Ronaldo, with VAR replays showing Sancho had been played onside by Sergio Reguilon.
The second half started with the teams trading big chances; Son shooting wide from Kulusevski’s cross and the irrepressible Ronaldo forcing a good save from Lloris.
The Maguire own goal soon followed and United’s best hope of taking the lead for a third time thereafter seemed to lie with Ronaldo who was denied by another good stop from Lloris after 76 minutes, just before his remarkable hat-trick goal.
De Gea 6; Dalot 6, Varane 6, Maguire 5, Telles 6; Matic 6 (Cavani 79, 6), Fred 7; Rashford 6 (Elanga 67, 6), Pogba 7, Sancho 8; Ronaldo 10 (Lindelof 82).
Bailly, Jones, Mata, Lingard, Cavani, Henderson, Wan-Bissaka, Elanga.
Lloris 5; Romero 5, Dier 5, Davies 6 (Bergwijn 87); Doherty 5, Bentancur 6 (Winks 87), Hojbjerg 7, Reguilon 7; Kulusevski 7 (Moura 77, 6), Son 8; Kane 8.
Gollini, Sanchez, Winks, Royal, Rodon, Bergwijn, White, Scarlett.
J Moss 6
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