Manchester United made a statement on their return to the UEFA Champions League, cruising to a 4-0 victory over Azerbaijani champions Sabah at Old Trafford on Thursday.
United, back in Europe’s premier club competition after a three-season absence, produced a controlled display to secure a comfortable opening-night victory and ease some of the pressure surrounding their uneven start to the Premier League season.
Matheus Cunha put the hosts ahead in the 27th minute, meeting Patrick Dorgu’s cross and guiding the ball into the near corner.
Bruno Fernandes then doubled United’s advantage shortly before the interval after linking up with Youri Tielemans, giving Michael Carrick’s side a two-goal cushion at half-time.
Benjamin Sesko added a third after the restart, rounding Sabah goalkeeper Stas Pokatilov before finding the net for his first start of the season.
The visitors’ night got worse when a costly mistake from Pokatilov presented Lisandro Martinez with an open goal, allowing the Argentine defender to complete United’s 4-0 victory.
United turn attention to Manchester derby
The emphatic win came at an important time for United, who have endured a relatively underwhelming opening to their Premier League campaign.
The Red Devils have collected four points from their first three league matches and will now shift their attention to Sunday’s highly anticipated Manchester derby against Manchester City.
Carrick also managed his squad with the derby in mind, leaving Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire and Marcus Rashford out of the starting XI.
Tielemans, Kobbie Mainoo, Bryan Mbeumo and Sesko were subsequently withdrawn during the second half as United protected key players ahead of the weekend fixture.
Sabah overwhelmed by United
Sabah had fought through four qualifying rounds to reach the Champions League group stage, but the Azerbaijani side struggled once United increased the intensity at Old Trafford.
Sabah manager Valdas Dambrauskas had acknowledged before kick-off that his team had made a rapid rise by reaching the Champions League proper without first experiencing either the Europa League or Conference League.
The gulf in experience and quality became increasingly evident as United took control of the contest.
Bayern Munich also make winning start
Elsewhere, Bayern Munich began their Champions League campaign in similarly dominant fashion, defeating Bodø/Glimt 5-0 at home.
Jamal Musiala marked his return to the starting line-up by opening the scoring, before Harry Kane and Alphonso Davies added further goals.
Michael Olise then struck twice to complete the rout for the six-time European champions.
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The victory also extended Bayern’s extraordinary record in opening Champions League matches to 24 consecutive wins, a run stretching back to 2002.
Other matches produced tighter contests.
Fenerbahçe and Roma played out a 1-1 draw, while PSV were held to the same scoreline by Shakhtar Donetsk.
Lens edged Slavia Prague 3-2, while Como secured an impressive 4-1 victory over RB Leipzig.
Champions League results
- Fenerbahçe 1-1 Roma
- PSV 1-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
- Bayern Munich 5-0 Bodø/Glimt
- Slavia Prague 2-3 Lens
- Como 4-1 RB Leipzig
- Manchester United 4-0 Sabah