PAUL SCHOLES never looks at home in a club suit and tie, but that was what he wore the last time Manchester United appeared in a European Cup final, nine years ago in Barcelona. Having been forced to sit out that historic occasion through suspension, it was fitting that he should be the one whose marvellous goal allowed his team to take their first step towards another final last night.

His strike, which came in the 14th minute, was as completely characteristic of the man as his ginger hair or his autograph. When Gianluca Zambrotta, a World Cup winner with Italy, played the loosest of clearances, the ball fell into Scholes's path. He was 25 yards from goal, with no defender in attendance, and the shot went like a tracer bullet into the top corner of the net, leaving Victor Valdes helpless. It is many years since Alex Ferguson described Scholes as "the best finisher in the club", but this was the sort of instant accuracy, as much a piece of virtuosity as any number of stepovers, that he had in mind.

It was, astonishingly, only Scholes's second goal in 29 appearances this season, and his first since August. That one, too, was driven in from outside the area. Presumably Cristiano Ronaldo, with 38 goals in 45 games, would qualify comfortably ahead of him as the current holder of Ferguson's accolade, but none of Ronaldo's goals in all competitions this season will have been as important as the one buried last night with such a typical lack of fuss by the Salford-born 33-year-old, who started training with United at the age of 14.

Amid the extreme tension of last night's opening 45 minutes, and an even more nerve-racking second half in which a single Barcelona goal would bring disaster for United, we saw all the sides of Scholes. The game was not even 60 seconds old when he brought down the jinking Lionel Messi a matter of inches outside United's penalty area with as precisely calculated a professional foul as you will ever see. Messi had been made a present of the ball by Patrice Evra, and Scholes saw it as his duty to take the necessary action.

Later in the game he would not have escaped without a yellow card for an offence far worse than the arm across Zambrotta's shoulders that brought a caution for Ronaldo in the 67th minute.

Scholes has dropped deeper and deeper as the seasons have gone by, and this year he has spent most of his time alongside Michael Carrick at the base of United's midfield. Last night, however, he could occasionally be found making his stealthy way into the Barcelona penalty area, on one occasion getting ahead of all his colleagues but narrowly failing to profit from a marginally inaccurate final ball.

And, of course, there was his gorgeous passing, usually preceded by a piece of exquisite first-time control and a turn away from the nearest opponent before releasing the ball in such a manner as to reset the tempo and to cause the maximum disturbance to the loose geometry of Barcelona's defence, which the indomitable Carles Puyol was fighting to hold together.

As United approached the climax of what has been, to students of the Premier League, the most interesting season in tactical terms for many years, Ferguson produced yet another set of variations on his recent theme of an all-singing, all-dancing front five, whose members appear free to switch positions at will.

Later both Nani and Park Ji-sung appeared at centre-forward, although collectively they seemed to miss the binding and the dynamism usually provided by the absent Wayne Rooney, whose hip injury will probably also cost him an appearance in Saturday's match against West Ham.

It could be said that United were lucky to catch Barcelona, normally among Europe's free-scoring teams, in such a barren patch. Before last night's match they had not scored in 314 minutes of football.

Andres Iniesta flitted about to little effect, while Xavi and Deco were opaque and usually imprecise. And when Samuel Eto'o received the ball inside the Manchester half late in the first period, in a position from which he could have been expected to take on the defenders in front of him, he merely meandered out to the right flank and waited for support.

There was always Messi, of course, eternally ready to receive the ball on the right flank and create palpitations in the men standing between him and the goal. At times it was impossible not to feel sorry for a little genius so suddenly and unexpectedly marooned amidst mediocrity.

Guardian Service