Manchester Utd - 3 West Brom - 1: True to form, the Glazers sent their apologies last night, apparently deciding this was not an occasion worthy of their presence. It is a strange set-up that Manchester United's owners should be absent when the club bids farewell to George Best, but, then again, did anyone actually want them here?
As Old Trafford basked in nostalgia, it would have felt incongruous in the extreme to see the Glazers fixing their most wooden smiles on a night of such genuine emotion and warmth.
Far better for those who came to commemorate Best's life that they should do so in the company of men who will always be guaranteed a warm reception at this stadium.
Best's former team-mates played an integral part on a night of rich memories - an occasion that will be remembered for much more than the goals from Cristiano Ronaldo, Louis Saha and John O'Shea that eased United into the League Cup quarter-finals.
There has been so much to divide Manchester United's supporters during this annus horribilis, whether it be Alex Ferguson's apparent decline, Roy Keane's acrimonious exit, the breakaway FC United or that open sore, the Glazer takeover.
But as Old Trafford stood to acclaim their old hero, as "Georgie Georgie - Belfast Boy" was pumped out on the loudspeakers and an A-Z of former Stretford End favourites lined the pitch, this felt like a moment when the fans could reidentify the greatness behind the club and remind themselves why the name of Manchester United holds its lofty position in the sporting world.
Old Trafford, once again, felt like a cathedral with something to worship. "The entire Manchester United family is here," observed Bobby Charlton.
As for the Glazer family, their love for Old Trafford is such that on this momentous occasion, when the club paid tribute to a man who had enriched the lives of so many people, not one of those self-styled "lifelong fans" felt it necessary to make the trans-Atlantic flight from Tampa.
Ferguson paid his own tribute in the match programme. "As well as his talent, what remains in my mind is his courage. I can see him, even now, flying down the wing, riding tackles."
The same, sadly, could hardly be said of United's current number seven, Ronaldo, who needed only the faintest touch from Diomansy Kamara to convince an obliging referee, Mark Clattenburg, that United should be awarded the 12th-minute penalty that put this victory in motion.
With Ruud van Nistelrooy rested, Ronaldo stepped up himself to open the scoring and an air of inevitability began to descend.
Four minutes later Saha, starting his first match since April 9th and having already had one effort ruled out for a marginal offside, strode through Albion's defence to double the lead and, as a contest, that effectively was that.
Best would have appreciated some of the football that United conjured up, most notably via the stylish Giuseppe Rossi and culminating in O'Shea scoring a splendid third. Nathan Ellington made it 3-1 from a corner, but by then the Old Trafford choir were going through their entire Best repertoire.
Best had helped to restore the feelgood factor to Old Trafford and he would have liked that.
Guardian Service
MANCHESTER UNITED: Howard, Neville, Ferdinand, Silvestre, O'Shea (Pique 67), Ronaldo, Fletcher (Jones 59), Park (Bardsley 63), Richardson, Rossi, Saha. Subs not used: Rooney, Steele. Goals: Ronaldo 12 pen, Saha 16, O'Shea 56.
WEST BROM: Hoult, Albrechtsen, Moore (Gaardsoe 45), Clement, Robinson, Kamara (Earnshaw 70), Wallwork, Carter, Inamoto, Horsfield (Chaplow 66), Ellington. Subs not used: Greening, Kuszczak. Goal: Ellington.
Referee: M Clattenburg (Co Durham).
