He donned the number seven shirt during his first stint at the club, following in the footsteps of great United players including George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and David Beckham.
Manchester United edged closer to their 20th league title when a Titus Bramble own goal gave them a 1-0 win at Sunderland on Saturday to keep them 15 points clear of Manchester City with eight Premier League games to go.
Champions Manchester City slipped to a shock first Premier League defeat of the season at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, while Manchester United's campaign of woe continued with a loss to Crystal Palace.
A new year is born but Arsenal still frustrate their fans after summing up the season by beating Europa League combatants Newcastle United 7-3 at the weekend and then needing an own goal to draw 1-1 at lowly Southampton.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday
Manchester United missed the chance to make significant inroads into Manchester City's lead at the top of the Premier League after stumbling to a 1-1 draw against Newcastle United at Old Trafford on Saturday.
ManchesterCity moved up to third in the Premier League on Saturday while Newcastle United boosted their hopes of survival by coming back from two goals down at Liverpool to draw 2-2 and secure a precious point.
Images from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
Champions Manchester United will travel to Swansea City for their first Premier League match under new manager David Moyes while Manuel Pellegrini's Manchester City are at home to Newcastle United on August 17.
Images from the English Premier League matches played on Sunday
Manchester City went top of the Premier League after securing a controversial 2-0 win at Newcastle United on Sunday with an early Edin Dzeko goal and a stoppage time effort from Alvaro Negredo.
Manchester United will be back in action in next season's Champions League after they hammered Chelsea 4-1.
Arsenal restored their five-point lead at the top of the English Premier League with Eddie Nketiah scoring twice in a 3-2 defeat of Manchester United, including a 90th-minute winner.
'I can't give you a time but we will get there. We have given ourselves a big, big uphill task to get in the top four, never mind the top six'
Nuno's coaching staff have also been relieved of their duties. The club have not yet announced a replacement but British media reported former Chelsea and Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte is linked.
Ronaldo enjoyed a dream first appearance on his return to the club, scoring two goals in the 4-1 home victory over Newcastle United.
A summary of Sunday's Premier League matches
Striker Ruud van Nistelrooy's opportunistic goal gave them a 1-0 victory over Birmingham City in the English premiership.
Manchester United remain winless at home in the league this season after Arsenal enjoyed their first win at Old Trafford
There was no way through for Chelsea as Watford halted their recent resurgence in a goalless Premier League stalemate at Vicarage Road while Everton piled more woe on Newcastle United with a 3-0 victory on Wednesday.
Manchester United are three points clear of champions Chelsea in the Premier League.
Livewire striker Javier Hernandez struck six minutes from time to give Manchester United a 1-0 home win over Everton that extended their Premier League lead to nine points on Saturday.
The United States' bid for a fourth consecutive CONCACAF Nations League title came to a stunning end
A Titus Bramble own goal helped Manchester United edge closer to their 20th league title when they won 1-0 at Sunderland on Saturday to stay 15 points clear of champions Manchester City with only eight Premier League games left to play.
Chelsea narrowed Manchester United's lead in the Premier League to four points on Tuesday with a 1-0 victory at Portsmouth while Liverpool also kept their slender title hopes alive with a 2-0 defeat of Sunderland. United have two games in hand on both, starting with their trip to struggling Newcastle United on Wednesday.
Michael Owen struck twice in his first game of the season as Manchester United thrashed bitter rivals Leeds United 3-0 in a League Cup third-round tie at Elland Road on Tuesday.
Aston Villa beat Crystal Palace 1-0 to win a Premier League match for the first time since August while a late goal from Paul Dummett earned a 3-3 draw for Newcastle United against Manchester United on Tuesday.
Manchester United needed a stunning second-half equaliser from Wayne Rooney and a rare goal from Wes Brown to beat Newcastle United 2-1.
Manchester United took a huge step towards retaining their Premier League title when they beat West Ham United 4-1 at Old Trafford on Saturday after playing more than half the match with 10 men.
Champions Manchester United begin the second half of their Premier League title defence at the top of the league on Saturday but manager Alex Ferguson will be hoping for better luck at West Ham United.
Saturday's EPL meeting is crucial as champions United were beaten home and away by West Ham last year.
Chelsea striker Demba Ba struck twice on his debut as the FA Cup holders enjoyed a 5-1 drubbing of Southampton in the third round on Saturday and Robin van Persie's majestic last-gasp equaliser salvaged a 2-2 draw for Manchester United at West Ham.
A summary of Sunday's action in the Premier League.
Louis van Gaal's carrot and stick approach worked wonders on Friday as his rapidly-improving Manchester United beat Newcastle United 3-1 to cement third spot in the Premier League.
Manchester United trailed three times before a last-gasp goal from Javier Hernandez earned a rip-roaring 4-3 win over Newcastle United that opened a seven-point lead at the top of the English Premier League.
England striker Wayne Rooney hit a quickfire double, his first league goals of the year, to power Manchester United to a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United.
Kevin de Bruyne struck twice to inspire Manchester City to a dominant 4-2 win at Crystal Palace on Saturday and move the champions level on points with Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table.
Manchester United's 3-0 victory over Fulham gave them the top spot in the English premier league.
Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish scored three minutes apart as Manchester City came from behind to beat Premier League newcomers Luton Town.
A turbo-charged start yielding two goals in the opening 15 minutes and a spectacular effort by Tom Cleverley led Manchester United to a 3-0 victory at Newcastle United in the Premier League on Sunday.
