Manchester Utd 4 Blackburn Rovers 1: Ronaldo the irrepressible inspires devil of a revival

For a while, the news from Old Trafford must have given cause for optimism as Chelsea prepared for action at Vicarage Road. Blackburn led by Matt Derbyshire's first-half goal and Nemanja Vidic, the strong defender whose development has been a crucial component in Sir Alex Ferguson's latest title contending team, had been put out of this game - and potentially the rest of the season - with a broken collarbone.

It had been a strong performance by Mark Hughes' team but there should be no doubting the character they were up against. Rising to the threat suddenly posed to their grip on the Premiership after a run of six straight wins, United produced a second-half recovery so irresistible it blew away their opponents, preserving the advantage that will surely now bring the championship back here for the first time in four years.

The inspiration, not for the first time, was Cristiano Ronaldo, whose brilliance of technique is allied to a ferocious appetite for the ball that is almost guaranteed now to make him player of the season. There was no goal for Ronaldo and none for a frustrated Wayne Rooney but the quartet assembled by Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick, Ji-Sung Park and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was enough for Blackburn to collapse under the pressure United brought to bear.

Ferguson confessed afterwards, with seven matches remaining, that the tantalising distance between his side and the title "makes me nervous" but he needed little persuading that this was the performance of champions. "You would expect a championship team to show that kind of nerve, determination, drive and resolve and we did that today," he said. Yet Blackburn, who had been expected to represent their manager well on his return to Old Trafford, made a positive opening and might have had a penalty before Derbyshire's predatory strike gave them the lead.

That came when a shot by David Dunn clearly struck Wes Brown on the hand, although given that the United defender's arm was behind his back at the moment of contact it was reasonable enough for the referee Chris Foy to dismiss the appeal. None the less, by half-time Rooney, in need of a morale-boosting afternoon after his England disappointment, had missed two inviting opportunities to put United ahead, for all that Brad Friedel deserved credit.

It was as the second part of a double setback for United that Blackburn got their noses in front. First Vidic, falling awkwardly inside the Blackburn penalty area, had to be replaced. And no sooner had John O'Shea taken the field in his place than United were suffering in their own penalty area, where Van der Sar stopped Carrick's deflection off Morten Gamst Pedersen's low cross from going into his own net but could not deny Derbyshire, whose sharp reactions enabled him to claim his seventh goal of the season.

The extent to which those incidents rattled United was illustrated in an extraordinary moment early in the second half when Rio Ferdinand, furious at failing to be allowed advantage after a foul on Ronaldo, blasted the ball into the Stretford End from close range and struck a spectator full in the face. Medics quickly rushed to the aid of the unfortunate victim and it was much to the relief of an apologetic Ferdinand that the damage was not serious.

By then, Rooney had seen another couple of chances come and go, although United did not have much longer to wait for their collective frustrations to be lifted, thanks to a piece of individual brilliance from Scholes to cap an impressive return from suspension. Collecting a loose ball at the edge of the Blackburn box, Scholes evaded two full-on challenges before beating Friedel with a crisp diagonal strike to give his side a well-deserved parity. United were in full sail now and in the moments that followed, Tugay's foul on Ronaldo almost conceded a penalty, Ronaldo was denied by another Friedel save and Giggs thundered the ball against the bar from the edge of the six-yard box.

Throughout all this, Ronaldo, displaying a menace and trickery that excites the crowd every time he has the ball, was tormenting Blackburn and it was from his astute pull back that a nerveless Carrick sidefooted the ball through a crowded penalty area to claim the lead. It looked enough but United were far from being done.

Christopher Samba's hand-ball allowed Ronaldo another crack and he deserved not to be denied by Friedel's save but, in any event, the ball ran kindly for Park to add the third. With Blackburn beaten, the substitute Solskjaer wrapped things up with a late fourth. The title beckons.

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