West Ham 0 Manchester United 1

In a game devoid of clear-cut chances Giggs produced the one moment of genuine class when he picked up the ball wide on the left.

He cut inside, evading Carlton Cole's sliding challenge and jinking past Scott Parker, before unleashing a curling right foot shot beyond Rob Green's despairing dive from the edge of the box.

It was the 35-year-old's first goal of the season and means he has scored in every Premier League campaign.

Gianfranco Zola was rueful about Giggs' decisive contribution.

He said: "I wished he had stayed at home in Manchester. It would have been better for me.

"I have a lot of admiration for him, he is a fantastic player and although you are on the opposite side, you enjoy players like him.

"He is a very good advertisement for football and also for young players."

West Ham offered little genuine threat going forward with Cole, called up for England duty this Wednesday, effectively shackled by Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.

His best opportunity came in the first half when Jack Collison's clever through ball put him in behind United's normally watertight rearguard but the big striker could only produce a weak chip, comfortably held by Edwin Van der Sar.

In worsening conditions, with the rain pouring down, neither side could make much impression on the other.

Even World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo found opportunities few and far between to show off his skills, while Dimitar Berbatov often looked as if he would rather be elsewhere.

Zola was looking on the bright side of the defeat, which brought to an end an eight match unbeaten run for the Irons.

He said: "I think for me it has been a positive match. Forget about the result, I know that we lost, but when I watch a match I don't only see the result I also make other considerations.

"Today we were playing against the best team in Europe right now, if not in the world and we just lost by one goal in a very, very tight match so I am happy for my team.

"I think it has been another step forward for us, despite losing the game."

West Ham: Green, Neill, Ilunga, Upson, Collins, Behrami (Tristan, 87), Parker, Noble (Savio, 77), Collison, Cole, Di Michele. Unused subs: Lastuvka, Spector, Boa Morte, Kovac, Sears.

Booked: Neill

Manchester United: Van der Sar, R Da Silva, Ferdinand, Vidic, O'Shea, Ronaldo, Scholes, Carrick, Giggs, Tevez (Park, 87), Berbatov. Unused subs: Foster, Nani, Welbeck, F Da Silva, Fletcher, Eckersley.

Booked: Vidic

Goals: Giggs 62

Attendance: 34,958

Referee: Phil Dowd