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Life after Cristiano Ronaldo, even for a club with the mental, physical and financial resilience of Manchester United, was never going to be easy. The decamping of the Portugal forward and playboy for Real Madrid has left a huge void.

Wayne Rooney will no longer benefit from Ronaldo's assistance, but can recognise the value of the £80 million move and relate to the desires of the prolific forward. “I've spoken to him since he left,” Rooney said. “He was a great player for United, but it was his wish to go and I think the club have respected that. He did a great job for us and the money we got for him was unbelievable.

“We don't feel let down by him. We always knew he was going to go at some time. For both the club and for himself, it was a good deal. The six years we had out of him was brilliant so we wish him well.”

United are having to adjust to life after Carlos Tévez, too. Though less stellar or as self-obsessed or as regularly used as Ronaldo, the hard-working Argentina forward felt unloved at Old Trafford and also felt the urge to move on, around the corner to Manchester City.