Manchester United supporters’ panic can ease a little bit after the club’s 4-0 victory over Club Brugge.
Much had been made of the lack of striking options available to Louis van Gaal and his captain’s 10 game run without a goal for the Red Devils would have made for concerning reading.
But Wayne Rooney showed that his finishing touch hasn’t deserted him by firing United into the group phase of the Champions League with a hat-trick in less than an hour.
The United front man opened the scoring in the away leg of United’s qualifier against Club Brugge with a sublime turn and finish after being found by Memphis Depay.
After a quiet period for both teams, Rooney made it two after the break when he found the net after some well-worked build-up play from Depay and Ander Herrera.
And the skipper ensured he was leaving Belgium with the match ball when he was released by Juan Mata before sliding a deft finish under Sinan Bolat.
While fans will still be crying out for some competition for Rooney after Hernandez bottled his attempt to convert a penalty late on, it will be a reassuring sight to see their main striker finding the back of the net once more.
