5 Greatest matches played by Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson

#5 Man United 4-3 Real Madrid (2002-03 Champions League quarter-final)

Ronaldo showed his class in that unforgettable match

Real Madrid had beaten United 3-1 in a convincing win at Santiago Bernabeu in the first leg of the quarter-final. United faced an uphill task at home against the much-vaunted Galacticos of Real who had the likes of Ronaldo Luiz, Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane and Raul in their side. However, United went gung-ho and scored 4 goals in the match, but Ronaldo’s genius ensured that Real qualified by winning 6-5 on aggregate.

Ronaldo was unstoppable that day and scored a hat-trick with one of the finest displays by a striker in the modern era. He ran past and harrowed the United defenders repeatedly and beat Fabian Barthez, the United goalie, with powerful shots.

David Beckham came off the bench to score twice in the second half for United. Ruud Vaan Nistelrooy and Juan Sebastian Veron also scored to register a memorable victory for them, but it was not enough to secure qualification for Sir Alex’s side. Still, it was a classic in every sense of the word and remains one of the finest matches during his tenure at United.