RONALDO’S HAT-TRICK V NEWCASTLE IN FULL!
Cristiano Ronaldo might make his first Manchester United appearance in nearly a decade when we face Newcastle on Saturday in the Premier League.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's team welcomes the Magpies to Old Trafford this weekend, in what will be our first encounter since Cristiano Ronaldo's return to United was officially confirmed.
If Cristiano makes his second appearance in this weekend's 15:00 BST kick-off, it's unclear whether he'll start or come off the bench, but one thing we do know is that he's back at Carrington and working with his new teammates.
And, if you're anything like us, you've been counting down the days by watching recordings of famous moments from the Portuguese's legendary first term at the club over the international break.
If that's your thing, we've got some exciting news for you ahead of Saturday...
We'll be live broadcasting a full rebroadcast of Ronaldo's only United hat-trick, a 6-0 triumph over Newcastle in January 2008!
The complete 90 minutes will be available to watch on MUTV, ManUtd.com, and our Official App starting at 19:00 BST on Thursday, September 9th.
With championship contenders Arsenal and Liverpool having dropped points earlier in the day, there was an added emphasis on capitalizing.
Following a scoreless first half at Old Trafford, Cristiano led United back to the top in front of a 75,000-strong crowd, turning on the style and producing one of his most memorable performances in a United shirt to date.
To the delight of a loud Stretford End, the attacker broke the deadlock less than four minutes after the interval, sending a low free-kick under the diving Newcastle wall and into the net.
Soon after, Carlos Tevez increased the advantage, capitalizing on a defensive blunder, before our number seven added his second of the evening, closing off a sweeping United effort to make it 3-0.
The game appeared to be winding down to an easy finish for the Reds at that moment, but Sir Alex Ferguson's side wasn’t done yet, with Rio Ferdinand popping up on 85 minutes to extend the lead to four.
Then came Ronaldo's match-winning goal. He maintained his cool to control the ball in front of a crowded box and fake the shot before slotting in his 22nd goal of the season in all competitions.
Former Red Alan Smith was also sent off for Newcastle in the closing minutes, but it was Ronaldo who stole the headlines after helping United return to the top of the Premier League, with the Reds going on to win their second consecutive title at the end of the season.
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