‘That is what Ronaldo has done throughout his career’

Cristiano Ronaldo's record 178th Champions League game had been one of his quietest for 94 minutes until the ball broke kindly for him to break Villarreal hearts at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, however, said Ronaldo had shown his mental strength again by grabbing a stoppage-time winner in their 2-1 victory over Villarreal.

Ronaldo had little impact on the game until he struck in the fifth minute of stoppage time to give United a barely deserved victory against the Spaniards.

"That is what he has done throughout his career - he is so strong mentally, he just stays in the game, I have seen him all day today, the way he built himself up for the game, focused," said Solskjaer.

"He's done that so many times, when you saw him (for Portugal) against Ireland a month ago, he missed a pen, didn't touch the ball much and then scored two great headers in the last few minutes.

"When he gets that one chance it is a goal. It is the true mark of a very, very good finisher that he keeps calm when the chance arrives," he added.

Solskjaer badly needed three points after a run of three defeats in four games and got it with seconds to spare.

However, Solskjaer conceded United had "got lucky" and were "saved" by goalkeeper David de Gea as Villarreal enjoyed the overwhelming majority of the chances.

"Cristiano Ronaldo only got one chance and, well, he's Cristiano Ronaldo," said Villarreal defender Juan Foyth, who had kept United's most expensive summer signing Jadon Sancho quiet all night.

Sancho and Raphael Varane's arrival in the transfer window had already raised expectations at United this season before Ronaldo's stunning second coming in Manchester.

In Ronaldo's five games since returning to the club, he's scored five times. But he has also already been on the losing side twice and twice more United have needed late winners to dig themselves out of trouble.