As referee Rob Styles raised his whistle to his lips at The Hawthorns on Tuesday 27th January 2009, a Premier League record was broken. All the goal are from from Dimitar Berbatov, Carlos Tevez, Nemanja Vidic and a brace from Cristiano Ronaldo sealed a 5-0 victory over West Brom at The Hawthorns , who had their skipper Paul Robinson sent-off just before half-time.

While it was certainly true to say they were missing some key performers, including Wayne Rooney, Patrice Evra and Anderson, they were boosted by the return of Rio Ferdinand at the heart of the defence for the first time since the Club World Cup final. Ji-sung Park was also available after a hamstring strain had kept him out of the FA Cup win over Spurs, as was Cristiano Ronaldo who had been forced off with a virus in the latter stages of the cup win. Wes Brown, meanwhile, was named on the bench following three months on the sidelines with an ankle problem.

After the match, Ferguson was quick to praise the 38-year-old goalkeeper for his role in the feat. Of the Dutch shot stopper, the manager said: “Edwin Van der Sar, who has achieved everything in the game, is as delighted as when he saved that penalty kick in Moscow during the Champions League final.

“He was over the moon in the dressing room and that tells you his desire. He has still got that ambitious streak and wants to win all the time.”

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