Manchester United Open Champions League Return with 4-0 Sabah Win

Manchester United made a winning return to the UEFA Champions League at Old Trafford, beating Sabah 4-0 in their first match in the competition for three years. Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes, Benjamin Sesko and Lisandro Martinez scored as United began their European campaign with three points.

What changed for Manchester United

United established control in the first half against the Azerbaijani visitors. Cunha broke the deadlock before Fernandes increased the lead, and Sesko made it 3-0 immediately before the interval.

The Slovenia international has now scored in consecutive matches after also finding the net against Everton at the weekend. His goal came after he took the ball beyond Sabah goalkeeper Stas Pokatilov, who had come from his line, before finishing into an unguarded goal.

Martinez completed the scoring and registered his first goal at Old Trafford. Patrick Dorgu also played as United produced a comprehensive home performance.

• Matheus Cunha scored United’s opener.
• Bruno Fernandes added the second goal.
• Benjamin Sesko continued his scoring run with the third.
• Lisandro Martinez claimed his first Old Trafford goal.

Competition context

The result marked United’s first Champions League fixture since their three-year absence from the tournament. Four separate scorers underlined the range of attacking contributors available to the side on their return to Europe.

Sesko said the victory and the spread of goals gave the group a valuable lift. “I saw him rushing out and I was quite overjoyed to take the ball away from him to make the goal a little bit easier,” he said of his finish. “Of course, I’m happy.”

He also highlighted the response from the Old Trafford crowd, describing the occasion as “perfect” for the supporters and stressing the importance of seeing several players score. The forward said the collective contribution could strengthen confidence and morale within the squad.

What is scheduled next

United now return to Premier League action with Manchester City due at Old Trafford on Sunday. City arrive for the derby as league leaders.

Sesko believes the European result can help United prepare for the domestic test, but said recovery will be essential before attention turns fully to the derby. “The confidence boost here is definitely big,” he said. “Now, it’s important to recover very well and obviously focus on the derby.”