United’s reappearance in Europe’s premier club competition came 1,003 days after their previous involvement ended in disappointment. Carrick, who lifted the trophy as a player with the club in 2008, had spoken in the build-up of the competition’s enduring pull. “It’s a magical competition,” he said. “It’s where we all want to be. When you’re out of it, you realise how special it is, and when you’re in it, you want to make the most of it. We’ve all seen some special nights and felt some special things in this competition over the years. We’re delighted to be here, but we’re not here to just enjoy the occasion. We’re here to do business and go as far as we possibly can.” He added that winning the Champions League remained “the ultimate” and “the best feeling I’ve had” as a footballer, expressing the hope of experiencing it again one day.
Sabah arrived as genuine underdogs, a club founded only in 2017 that had completed a remarkable rise by winning the Azerbaijan Premier League last season. Their head coach Valdas Dambrauskas had prepared a well-organised side that pressed with purpose and carried genuine confidence. Carrick had been careful not to underestimate them. “They’re a very well-coached team,” he noted. “You can see that quite clearly – their ideas, the principles that they have that are repeatable, and they have some really good things. They’ve won a lot of football matches over the last 12 months and are playing with a lot of confidence. You can see the way they take the ball and play through the pitch. They have some really good connections and press well as a team. We’re fully aware of what we’re up against and the challenge that we face.”
That challenge was evident in the early stages. United dominated possession but found Sabah compact and difficult to break down. The visitors even created the clearest opportunity of the opening exchanges when Kaheem Parris drove into the box and delivered a perfect cross for Joy-Lance Mickels, whose header from close range should have found the net but instead drifted wide. The miss proved costly. In the 27th minute United finally converted their territorial superiority. Patrick Dorgu, deployed at left-back in the absence of Luke Shaw, advanced and delivered a low first-time cross that Cunha met at the near post, turning the ball into the net for his first Champions League goal.
The breakthrough settled any residual nerves among the home crowd of 73,685. United’s football grew more fluid. Six minutes before the interval a slick exchange involving Cunha and Youri Tielemans created the second. Tielemans, showing sharp awareness inside the area, cut the ball back for Fernandes, who side-footed home with the composure that has defined so much of his European contribution for the club. Moments later, on the stroke of half-time, the third arrived. Fernandes found Bryan Mbeumo with a first-time pass; the Cameroon international in turn slipped Šeško through on goal. The Slovenian striker, making his first start of the season, rounded goalkeeper Stas Pokatilov, kept his feet under pressure and rolled the ball into the empty net from a tight angle. It was a finish of real composure and capped a first half that had begun slowly before catching fire.
The second period lacked the same intensity, as Carrick began to manage minutes with the derby in mind. Šeško, who had scored, was withdrawn after 64 minutes to warm applause. Joshua Zirkzee entered the fray and played a part in the fourth goal midway through the half. Fernandes delivered a clever free-kick over the wall; Zirkzee controlled and back-heeled under pressure, creating chaos in the Sabah defence. Pokatilov and his colleagues failed to clear, allowing Martínez to tap in from a yard out. United’s expected goals of 3.67 against Sabah’s 0.89 illustrated the gulf in quality, yet Carrick’s side had been clinical rather than wasteful once the first goal arrived.
Šeško’s contribution carried particular significance. After a difficult start to life at Old Trafford under previous management, the forward has found sharper form under Carrick. His goal on Thursday, combined with recent contributions from the bench, underlined growing confidence and timing in the final third. Dorgu, too, impressed on the left flank, providing the assist for the opener and showing the attacking intent that has become a feature of United’s play. Fernandes, as so often, was the creative and finishing hub, his second-half free-kick delivery setting up the final goal.
The evening was always likely to be a steep learning curve. Sabah competed with organisation and spirit for long periods and created the one clear chance that might have altered the narrative, but the physical and technical demands of the occasion eventually told. Their players had earlier wandered the empty pitch taking photographs, capturing the scale of Old Trafford before the stadium filled, a reminder of the distance travelled by a club still in its infancy.
United now turn their attention to Manchester City on Sunday. The three points and clean sheet provide a solid foundation in the new league-phase format, yet tougher tests, beginning with a trip to Atlético Madrid, lie ahead. Carrick had described the scheduling of a Thursday fixture before a derby as “not ideal” but something the squad would simply have to manage. On this evidence they handled the first part of that challenge with efficiency and control, restoring Champions League football to Old Trafford in the manner the club has long expected of itself.
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