Man United goes on a scoring spree in its long-awaited return to the Champions League
Manchester United's Matheus Cunha celebrates after he scored the opening goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester United and Sabah FK in Manchester, England, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. Credit: AP/Dave Thompson
MANCHESTER, England — It's nearly three years since Manchester United last played in the Champions League. That wait came to an end on Thursday as European club soccer's top competition returned to Old Trafford and United produced the type of performance that fans used to be able to take for granted.
Sure, there will be greater tests for Michael Carrick's team in Europe this season — namely Atletico Madrid next month and German giant Bayern Munich in January. But the home crowd relished a 4-0 win, even against such limited opposition as Azerbaijan's Champions League debutant Sabah.
“It was perfect for everyone — especially for our fans. It means a lot to them when they see so many goals," goalscorer Benjamin Sesko told broadcaster TNT Sports.
Long gone are the days when three-time champion United was feared throughout Europe and a consistent challenger for the title. It has not lifted the trophy since 2008. Since club icon Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013 it has regularly failed to even qualify for the Champions League and was eliminated from the group phase in two of its last three campaigns.
Carrick will hope he can buck that trend in his first season coaching at this level and this was an encouraging start.
“It’s nice to have a clean sheet and obviously win the game," said the United coach. “I thought some of our attacking players were fantastic, some of the football we played was really good, dangerous on transition, and we defended for the most part really well.
“The result looks comfortable. It wasn’t always like that, but I thought we just did a lot of good things tonight, which gave us a good result.”
Manchester United's Matheus Cunha celebrates after he scored the opening goal against Sabah's goalkeeper Stas Pokatilov, left, during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester United and Sabah FK in Manchester, England, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. Credit: AP/Dave Thompson
United is back in the Champions League after a resurgence under then-stand-in Carrick last season. A third-place finish in the Premier League earned him the job on a permanent basis.
But United's form has been unconvincing so far this term, with just four points from three games.
“We’re always pushing for more. Results wise it hasn’t been the start we wanted,” Carrick said. “We wanted to have more points in the league, but performance wise, there’s a lot of things in there that we were looking for, that we’ve been pleased with and there’s certain things to improve.”
Goal spree
This was United's most complete performance of the season so far, which could be good timing ahead of Sunday's clash with Manchester City.
Manchester United's Benjamin Sesko celebrates after scoring his side's third goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Manchester United and Sabah FK in Manchester, England, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. Credit: AP/Dave Thompson
Matheus Cunha scored United's first Champions League goal since 2023, when it was eliminated in the group stage under former manager Erik ten Hag.
Brazil international Cunha fired home from close range in the 27th minute as United went on a first-half scoring spree.
Bruno Fernandes and Sesko gave United a 3-0 lead at the break and Lisandro Martinez added a fourth in the second half.
“Collectively as a team, we’ve done a lot of good things and that’s why we’re excited about what the season brings,” Carrick said.
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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson
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