Whatever he might try to convince himself on those cold and muddy afternoons when he is subjected to rough-house treatment from hatchet men in the Barclays Premier League, it would be no different for Cristiano Ronaldo wherever he plied his beguiling trade. His is a talent that inspires resentment and attracts aggressive tackles wherever he goes and, if he thinks it would be any different if he were playing in Spain for his beloved Real Madrid, an arduous evening here at the Madrigal should tell him otherwise.

Playing out a goalless draw for the fourth time in as many meetings in the Champions League, Manchester United and Villarreal secured their progression to the knockout stages, but for Ronaldo, in particular, this was far from the convivial occasion that conspiracy theorists in Glasgow might suspect. The United forward was subjected to some horrible challenges, with Joan Capdevila, the Spain full back, sent off for the worst of them with eight minutes remaining.

At the final whistle, Ronaldo ran off the pitch without shaking hands with an opponent, let alone swapping shirts. Only when Robert Pirès, the former Arsenal winger, caught up with him in the tunnel did he assent to both; perhaps Pirès persuaded him that they were kindred spirits, even if they occupy different planes now.

Sir Alex Ferguson, the United manager, complained of “systematic” fouling of his No 7 and, while such grievances have often fallen on deaf ears in the past, Ronaldo was entitled to a little sympathy last night. Even if it is not always easy to draw parallels between late tackles and “being hit with a baton as you walk down the street”, to use the analogy that Ferguson employed on his arrival in Spain on Monday night, the cumulative impact of the physical suffering that Ronaldo endures over the course of a game, let alone a season, must be enormous. Prima donna he may be, but there are times when his posturing and flouncing can be excused. This match was one of them.

By half-time, Ronaldo was wearing the pained expression of a man whose resolve was being put to the test. Only seven minutes had passed when the Portugal forward, slowly picking himself up after a heavy challenge, felt the fingernails of Ariel Ibagaza in his neck. On that occasion, he flicked out an arm in retaliation and was warned, along with the Villarreal midfield player, by Roberto Rosetti, the Italian referee.

Later in the first half came crunching tackles from Javi Venta and Sebastián Eguren, who were booked. Both challenges were of the type that old pros of a certain era would dismiss as hard but fair, but they have no place in a game that, for better or worse, is hardly a contact sport these days. Neither does a late challenge from Fabricio Fuentes on Wayne Rooney on the hour, which left the United forward limping and earned the defender a yellow card.

Rather than rise to the provocation, Ronaldo sought to punish his opponents in the way that he knows best. Deliberating theatrically over his free kicks, inviting derision from the home crowd, who had taken a dislike to him, he unleashed venomous shots that flew past the wall. On both occasions, though, he found Diego López, the Villarreal goalkeeper, equal to his efforts. The second was an excellent save, low down at his right-hand post, but even that was surpassed four minutes before half-time when Ronaldo, running on to Rooney’s layoff 25 yards from goal, struck another fierce shot that López dived full length to save, pushing the ball on to the crossbar.

If the match sounds like a one-man crusade, that was how it looked at times, but there should also be an honourable mention for Jonny Evans, who again looked highly assured at the heart of defence. He and Rio Ferdinand snuffed out the minimal threat of Robert Pires and Giuseppe Rossi, the former United forward, with Tomasz Kuszczak, the United goalkeeper tested only once, when Santi Cazorla let fly from distance in the seventeenth minute. López, by contrast, was called upon frequently, denying not only Ronaldo but also Anderson, twice, and Rooney, who felt compelled to apologise to Ferguson and the opposition for the moment early in the second half when he dived in an uncharacteristic attempt to win a penalty. Rosetti, who excelled throughout, was having none of it.

Rooney’s goalless sequence was stretched to seven games, a run that he would love to end in the Manchester derby on Sunday, but his frustrations cannot begin to match those of Carlos Tévez. The Argentina forward was restricted to a four-minute run-out from the bench and no sooner had he joined the action than he was castigated by Ferguson for casually losing possession to Venta. By that stage, Villarreal were down to ten men, after Capdevila’s assault on Ronaldo, and, having barely threatened all evening, had abandoned any idea of winning the match.

If only extra points were awarded for moral victories, United would have secured first place in the group.

Villarreal (4-4-1-1): Diego López — J Venta, F Fuentes, G Rodríguez, J Capdevila — Santi Cazorla, M Senna (sub: Bruno, 46min), S Eguren, A Ibagaza — R Pirès (sub: M Fernández, 68) — G Rossi (sub: G Franco, 79). Substitutes not used: S Viera, P Cygan, Á López, Edmilson. Booked: Venta, Eguren, Fuentes. Sent off: Capdevila.

Manchester United (4-4-1-1): T Kuszczak — J O’Shea, R Ferdinand, J Evans, P Evra — C Ronaldo, D Fletcher (sub: D Gibson, 80), M Carrick (sub: C Tévez, 86), Nani (sub: Park Ji Sung, 85) — Anderson — W Rooney. Substitutes not used: B Foster, N Vidic, Rafael da Silva, R Giggs. Booked: Evra, Ronaldo.

Referee: R Rosetti (Italy).