GOAL THREAT

Van Persie did exactly what United required of him, turning up in the right place at the right time to deliver the goals that sent them through 3-2 on aggregate.



With each of his efforts as he notched his hat-trick, he demonstrated exactly the clinical edge the Red Devils needed, burying a penalty, slotting in Wayne Rooney's tee-up from close range and then curling in a free-kick.



He did not really come close to adding to those goals, but that hardly seemed to matter.

LINK-UP PLAY

The Dutchman had struggled notably both in his previous outing - against Liverpool - and the first leg of this tie, and there were some early signs he might continue in that vein.



But that soon changed as he won the penalty while chesting down Ryan Giggs' floated ball forward before converting it with aplomb.

In truth, there was not a great deal in the way of Van Persie linking with his team-mates throughout the contest, but certainly his combination with Rooney when he stuck in his second goal was spot-on.



He laid the ball in front of goal nicely for Danny Welbeck in the second half, but the flag was up.

OVERALL IMPACT