Porto 0 Manchester United 1 (Man Utd win 3-2 on aggregate)

CRISTIANO RONALDO’S astounding early goal means Sir Alex Ferguson will go head-tohead with old rival Arsene Wenger for a place in the Champions League Final.

The rise of Chelsea and Liverpool may have taken the edge off battles between Manchester United and Arsenal over the past few years, but the renewal of hostilities promises to be almost as spectacular as the Ronaldo strike that created it.

The sixth-minute effort was his 20th goal of the season and only his second in the Champions League since completing an astonishing haul of 42 by last year’s final in Moscow.

There was certainly no doubting it was worthy of winning any game and earning United the accolade of becoming the first English team to beat Porto on their own ground.

Sir Alex felt the understanding of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic was the key to the win and said: ‘‘We showed good concentration at the back and defended very well.

‘‘If we get back to that foundation of not conceding goals, we can do well. We had stability at the back with the recognition of Ferdinand and Vidic and that was a great start.

‘‘I couldn’t see the dangers.

I thought we controlled that part very well. Nothing really bothered us.’’ As almost a side issue, it also keeps United on track to win the quintuple in a season they have brought back to life at just the right time.

In calling for the spirit of Turin ‘99, Ferguson knew if that momentous evening was to be repeated, he would have to go through the agony of being two goals down before a famous victory could be achieved.

Ronaldo however, has his own history book to write.

A repeat of last season’s 42- goal tally was never likely to be repeated in a campaign delayed because of ankle surgery.

But the 24-year-old has still made a significant contribution to United’s attempt to land an unprecedented quintuple, even if, like so many of his team-mates, he has looked a little off the pace in recent weeks.

There could have been no better stage to signal his renewed intent.

With the exception of Sporting Lisbon, Ronaldo is roundly jeered when he returns to any of the major clubs in his homeland, Porto being no exception.

They recognise his talent, though, even if no one expected what was to come when Ronaldo collected Anderson’s short pass close to the halfway line.

Sensing trepidation in home ranks, Ronaldo let fly with a shot that Porto keeper Helton had no chance of saving.

Had Nemanja Vidic been able to keep his close-range effort under the crossbar after John O’Shea added the faintest of touches to a Ryan Giggs corner just before the interval, United would have been two up.

But the Serbian missed, giving Porto hope, but with Rio Ferdinand back alongside Vidic after his recent groin strain, there was an authority about United’s defending that had not been in evidence since before they were dismantled by Liverpool five games ago.

There was experience too, with Ryan Giggs and Van der Sar taking just long enough over their set pieces not to incur the wrath of Swiss referee Massimo Busacca while eating up vital seconds.

And while they did not exactly coast home, the visiting supporters were celebrating victory long before the final whistle confirmed it.