Manchester United said goodbye to George Best in the most appropriate manner possible as they recorded their biggest Premiership win of the season to beat Portsmouth 3-0 at Old Trafford.
Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney and Ruud van Nistelrooy were all on target as the Red Devils sauntered home, ending the most emotional and traumatic of weeks in perfect fashion.
Other than the sporadic efforts of Lomana LuaLua, managerless Portsmouth had little to offer in return and with relegation staring them in the face, the return of Harry Redknapp cannot come quickly enough.
Given Rooney scored twice to sink the south-coast men in the corresponding fixture last season, Pompey will be glad to see the back of him.
Sir Alex Ferguson and Nistelrooy were united in their praise of Scholes after the Manchester United midfielder ended his scoring drought in the 3-0 win.
"I'm delighted for Scholes, we know he's the main player, our playmaker and he works hard and deserved it," Van Nistelrooy said.
"Overall it was a great performance and something to build on. We had the opportunities to score a couple which we did. Portsmouth hung in there and fought for the lives which made it a difficult game."
Manager Ferguson said: "It was a convincing performance, we really worked our socks off and showed great determination. I'm pleased with the scoreline. We got the start we wanted in terms of tempo but then we maybe over-played but got a second win.”
Regarding Scholes' goal, Ferguson said: "I'm delighted and I'm sure everyone in the ground is too. Knowing Paul, what a good goalscorer he is, he can start adding to his tally now."
