Ryan Giggs played 90 minutes of Champions League football two days before his 40th birthday and finished the evening by playing a sublime pass to fashion a fifth goal for Manchester United. It is saying something, therefore, that his was not the story of the day.

Once more the narrative of a United victory belonged to the remarkable Wayne Rooney. Another man-of-the-match performance from the champions’ born-again centre forward. No goals but four assists and another night of lung-scorching endeavour. What would David Moyes and his team do without him this season? We can only wonder.

It only seems like yesterday that we waited at Swansea’s Liberty Stadium for Rooney to emerge as a substitute during United’s opening Barclays Premier League game of the season. Back in August, towards the end of a difficult summer for the 28-year-old, it was hard to guess just how the travelling supporters would react to him and indeed he to them.

Ultimately, of course, the afternoon passed by without rancour. United’s support realised just how much they needed Rooney. Here in the freezing cold of the BayArena, they gave thanks for their favourite Liverpudlian once more.

To return to an earlier point, United are not a one-man team, far from it. They do rely on Rooney, though. For goals, for assists, for leg work and for inspiration. Moyes has said privately that he can’t afford to drop the player at the moment and it is easy to understand why.

United actually came through a slightly tricky opening 20 minutes to win here and ensure they qualify for the knockout stages with a game to spare. Rooney, remarkably, was involved in the first four goals, the only surprise being that he didn’t score.

By the time Giggs played Nani clear to score the fifth, Rooney was sitting with a rug on his knees among the substitutes. Certainly it was cold here. This, though, was an evening to warm United’s supporters, a night when they arrived rather anxiously and left having seen their team score five away from home in Champions League for the first time since the 6-2 win at Brondby in the 1998-99 Treble season.

There is unlikely to be a Treble this season of course. Nevertheless, this is a season that continues to bring steady improvement and Moyes will now look ahead to a winter of Premier League football knowing his team have something to build on. Early on in Germany, things were not so easy. Missing Michael Carrick in the centre of the midfield, Giggs and his holding partner Phil Jones struggled for a while to hold an energetic Leverkusen side that had won their last eight home games in this competition.

In terms of chances Son Heung-Min may have done better than shoot wide in the 18th minute before central defender Emir Spahic headed the resultant corner narrowly over the bar.

Forward Gonzalo Castro then shot wildly over when through on goal down the right before a last-ditch tackle from Jonny Evans spared Rio Ferdinand’s blushes after Stefan Kiessling left the former England player for dead on the edge of the penalty area with an Elvis wiggle of the hips.

With a quarter of the game gone, Moyes may have been a little agitated. United just weren’t seeing enough of the ball.

But everything seemed to change in the space of seven minutes as the visitors broke away to score twice before the half hour.

Bayer midfielder Stefan Reinartz didn’t help his team by trying to play a cute half-volley backheel in the centre circle in the 23rd minute but once United had the ball they broke devastatingly.

hinji Kagawa played the ball to Giggs, he funnelled it wide left to Rooney and when United’s man of the moment crossed deliciously in to the box, Antonio Valencia arrived behind Kagawa at the far post to shovel the first goal in to the net from a matter of yards. Whether Rooney was aiming for Valencia or Kagawa only he will know. It didn’t matter, though, as United were ahead and it was soon to get better.

Before United’s second, they had three more chances and that said much for the manner in which the home team wobbled on going behind. Evans and Jones both applied agricultural swishes to chances as the ball zinged around the penalty area before Giggs then struck a free-kick in to the defensive wall when he may have been better leaving it to Rooney.

Moments later, though, Rooney did take command of a dead ball out on the left and when his cross caused consternation in the home defence Bayer defender Spahic applied the decisive touch, backheading the ball beyond his own goalkeeper and in to the top corner. Sami Hyypia may have wondered just quite how his team were behind. After that, though, they capitulated rather alarmingly.

Kagawa and Nani both had chances early in the second period before the Leverkusen defences were breached again in the 66th minute. A corner from the right was headed down to Rooney and when his shot from close range was saved by goalkeeper Bernd Leno, Evans moved on to the rebound, applying a deft touch with his left foot before side footing the ball in with his right.

If that was a relatively straight forward finish by a defender, the one required of Smalling 10 minutes later was even less taxing. This time, Kagawa — impressive all night in the No 10 role — was instrumental as he chipped the ball through for Rooney. His team-mate, as aware as ever, then lifted it left toward Smallling who nudged it home from a yard.

In the BayArena the home fans suffered. This was not in the script. Few would begrudge Giggs his moment, though, as his late pass allowed Nani to round Leno and score. Afterwards, Giggs suggested United should have scored more. With Rooney in this team, anything occasionally looks possible.

—Daily Mail