After 1,003 days: Old Trafford sees UCL football, Man United starts new campaign with crushing win

It's been a while.For 1,003 days, Manchester United fans have been waiting – not patiently, but eagerly and desperately – for their club's return to the Champions League, the competition where they feel they belong.It wasn't easy. The crisis ran deep, and it's still not over, but the Red Devils seem to be heading in the right direction.How Man United missed out on Mbappe: "They weren't too sure about him, so we just left it"They endured plenty of hardship, even found themselves embroiled in a Premier League relegation battle, but now they are on the road to recovery.Third place in the league secured their return to the UCL, while the draw handed them a favourable home opener against Azerbaijani side Sabah.It looked like a straightforward task on paper, but Michael Carrick still fielded his strongest available lineup, showed respect for the opposition, and started the campaign with a 4-0 win.🔴 UNITED HIT FOUR AGAINST SABAH!Manchester United beat Sabah Baku 4–0 in the Champions League, with four different players on the scoresheet.Cunha opened the scoring after 27 minutes before Fernandes (42′) and Šeško (45′) made it 3–0 at the break. Martínez added the fourth… pic.twitter.com/xbF8Si1QN7— BurleJunior (@BurleJunior) September 10, 2026 Three years ago, United finished bottom of their group, behind Bayern Munich, Copenhagen and Galatasaray. Now, things already look much brighter.Again, they were hardly facing top-class opposition, but anyone who makes it to the UCL league phase has earned their place there.Sabah held firm for more than 20 minutes, weathering wave after wave of attacks. However, once their defence cracked for the first time, there was no going back.22.00: (1.53) West Ham (4.20) Wrexham (6.25)In the 27th minute, United pounced after Sabah forward Kaheem Parris lost possession in his own half. Bruno Fernandes and Patrick Dorgu combined to get the ball to Matheus Cunha, who made no mistake to break the deadlock.By the break, it was already 3-0, as Bruno and Benjamin Sesko unleashed a three-minute blitz to give the home side a comfortable lead.Bruno Fernandes has 16 goal involvements in his last 16 Champions League games after scoring against Sabah.The Manchester United midfielder was keen for the onlooking audience to acknowledge Youri Tielemans for the assist. Michael Carrick's side lead 3-0, with Matheus Cunha &… pic.twitter.com/HiFzDXcNSv— The Athletic | Football (@TheAthleticFC) September 10, 2026 After the stellar and extremely efficient first half, the Red Devils took their foot off the gas. Carrick gave his substitutes – Mason Mount, Joshua Zirkzee, Andrey Santos, Harry Amass, and Shea Lacey – a run-out, and his team still managed to find the net one more time.In the 69th minute, following Zirkzee's effort and Sabah keeper Stas Pokatilov's confused and clumsy reaction, Lisandro Martinez made it 4-0 and set the full-time score in United's crushing triumph and a good tune-up ahead of the Manchester derby against the Cityzens on Sunday (18.30).In the next Champions League game, United will face Atletico in Madrid, while Sabah will host Slavia Prague in their first-ever home game in Europe's elite competition.UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUEROUND 1TuesdayAEK – LASK 1-0 (1-0)/Marin 21/Club Brugge – Aston Villa 2-3 (1-3)/Vetlesen 19, Tresoldi 61 pen – McGinn 11, Buendia 22, Jackson 43/Porto – Manchester City 0-2 (0-0)/Haaland 47, 90+1/Dortmund – Villarreal 3-2 (0-0)/Veiga 53 og, Guirassy 80, 85 pen – Mourino 66, Guirassy 90+3 og/Lille – Betis 2-3 (2-1)/Ueda 12, Ribeiro 36 – Bartra 33,49, Parrott 53/Real Madrid – Inter 2-1 (2-0)/Mbappe 14, Valverde 23 – Augusto 77/WednesdayBarcelona – Feyenoord 5-1 (2-0)/Raphinha 3, 57, Aeyemi 22, Yamal 77, Jesus 85 – Steijn 82/Stuttgart – Viking 3-1 (3-1)/Demirovic 20, 26, 32 – Tripic 22/Liverpool – Atl.Madrid 2-1 (1-1)/Szoboszlai 40, Mac Allister 50 – Llorente 17/Napoli – Arsenal 0-1 (0-0)/Odegaard 75/PSG – Slovan B. 6-1 (3-0)/Dembele 17, 23, Torres 31, 47, 57, Ruiz 87 – Camara 58/Sporting – Galatasaray 3-1 (1-1)/Catamo 27, Suarez 57(p), Zalazar 63 – Inacio 5(og)/ThursdayFenerbahce – Roma 1-1 (0-1)/Brown 48 – Cristante 39/PSV – Shakhtar Donetsk 1-1 (0-1)/Dest 48 – Mendoza 45+1/Bayern Munich – Bodo/Glimt 5-0 (0-0)/Musiala 47, Kane 61, Davies 77, Olise 83, 90+2/Como – RB Leipzig 4-1 (2-0)/Baturina 15, Douvikas 38, Diao 54, Perrone 90+1 – Maksimovic 58/Manchester United – Sabah 4-0 (3-0)/Cunha 27, Bruno 42, Sesko 45, Martinez 69/Slavia Prague – Lens 2-3 (0-0)/Sturm 51, 88 – Sima 73, Thauvin 90+1, Aguilar 90+3/