Strachan praises Manchester machine

If Ryan Giggs stole the eye with a passionate display of dribbling, Beckham provided the game's decisive moments. His cross on the run to set up Andy Cole's simple tap-in for United's opening goal on 27 minutes was followed by a whipped free-kick through a disintegrating Coventry wall 10 minutes later.

Game over, even allowing for a spirited second-half performance from the home side. The persistence and drive of Beckham and Giggs, four days before their crucial Champions League match against Dinamo Kiev, made the difference.

Hunger, Coventry manager Gordon Strachan called it. He broke his habit of not talking about the opposition and not lavishing praise on Sir Alex Ferguson's team. They were together at Aberdeen and United, yet buddies they are not.

'Hunger comes into play every single game for them,' said Strachan. 'Some days they won't play as well but you never see the hunger changing.

'Alex Ferguson plays a huge part in that. He did the same thing at Aberdeen and St Mirren. Each time he brought a group of youngsters through. It's no coincidence.

'It's all about self-motivation. Look at Beckham and Giggs. They've been world-class players for three or four years but they just want to go out there and do it again and again.

'Some players do it and they're only world-class players for a year or two. Then they've had enough. Beckham and Giggs will be hungry for the next 10 years.

'You can see their enthusiasm to claim for everything, to go for and contest everything. Some players stay back and wait for the referee to make a decision. There's nothing wrong with forcing the referee's mind. They win tackles, they win headers, they run for everything. That's what you should do.

'The money and the medals don't mean anything to them at all. All they enjoy is the reputation and they don't want to give it up. It's a dying breed. The problem in football today is that the ones who think they are the good players are the ones who get the headlines and then tell the coaches what to do.

'These boys never criticise their club or their teammates. No-one. Since that European Cup win, they've got better and better. I suppose you have to say they are the most consistent Manchester United team ever. If I'd played in this current team, I would have been a better player than I was.'

The inevitability about Saturday's result was only briefly shaken by Ysrael Zuniga's headed goal for Coventry midway through the second half.

United's response was so complete that it was the last occasion the home side reached their penalty area. The natural order and a more reflective scoreline would have been restored had substitute Dwight Yorke's shot 10 minutes from time not come back off the inside of the City post.

'If they have a problem against Kiev, it won't come from the other team,' said Mustapha Hadji, whose international class shone out from the the more mundane talents around him in the Coventry team.

'They hold all the cards in their hands, some of the best players in the world and the danger for them is themselves.'

The future for Coventry is less certain. Strachan remains effervescent, yet his club, on the fourth anniversary of his taking over, are only one place better off than they were then. Coventry have now lost eight of their last nine matches at home to United. The problem is that lavishing praise on the hunger of opposition players like Beckham and Giggs only serves to highlight the inadequacies of your own team.