UEFA Champions League, League Stage 1Manchester UnitedMUN 10/09/2026 20:00 Sabah FA Venue Old TraffordTable of ContentsPreview for Manchester United v SabahThe UEFA Champions League TableTeam News for Manchester United v SabahExpected line-ups for Manchester United v SabahRecent Form & Stats for Manchester United v SabahWhere to Watch Manchester United v Sabah: TV and online streamsPrediction for Manchester United v SabahResponsible GamblingPreview for Manchester United v SabahManchester United boss Michael Carrick is relishing their return to the Champions League as they face Sabah at Old Trafford on Thursday. United have not played in Europes biggest competition since exiting the 2023-24 tournament in the group stages.A Carrick-inspired upturn in their Premier League fortunes secured a third-placed finish and Champions League qualification, with the Red Devils set to get their first taste of the new league phase format.They will be heavy favourites to make a strong start against Champions League debutants Sabah, the champions of Azerbaijans top flight.Bigger challenges lie in wait for United, who have also been drawn against Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich, Sporting CP, Roma, Como, RB Leipzig and Villarreal.And Carrick, who has seen his side make an uneven start to their Premier League season with four points from three games, is excited to tackle the task of leading United to the knockout stages for the first time since 2022.We worked hard to be here. Its great to be here, massively looking forward to the game and the campaign and try to make it as long as we can possibly make it, Carrick told a pre-match press conference. Big challenges ahead and real fantastic games starting tomorrow so massively looking forward to it.United have only reached two Champions League quarter-finals in the last 15 years, but Carrick is confident that he has a squad capable of competing to improve that record.He added: I dont think its a kind of going, If we get to a certain stage, thats a success, and if we dont, its not. Weve got to embrace the new challenge that we face as a group and push to what we can push to.I think were capable of doing some really good things in this competition and going further down the line in this competition, and then who knows when it gets to that stage. Im not writing anything off, but again, taking it step by step and certainly not getting ahead of ourselves, you know, because some part of it is a new experience for some of the players, and as a group it is a bit of a new experience right currently now.But the boys are used to playing European football for the most part in different competitions and well take that forward, and weve got a squad thats strong enough to compete.In Sabah, United are facing a side that only came into existence in 2017 and has enjoyed a rapid rise under Lithuanian coach Valdas Dambrauskas. Sabah won a dramatic play-off with Hapoel Beer Sheva to punch their ticket to the league phase, and Carrick is not taking them lightly.First of all I think they are a very well-coached team, said Carrick.You can see that quite clearly, the ideas, the principles that they have. They have won a lot of football matches over the last 12 months or so. Playing with a lot of confidence. You can see the way they are playing. They take the ball and play through the pitch, they have some good connections, press well as a team so we are obviously fully aware of what we are up against and the challenges that we face.The UEFA Champions League Table UEFA Champions League 2026 World #TeamPlayedWonDrawnLostGFGAGDPtsLast 4 1 Manchester City11002023 W 2 Aston Villa11003213 W 3 Real Betis11003213 W 4 Borussia Dortmund11003213 W 5 Real Madrid11002113 W 6 AEK Athens FC11001013 W 7 Arsenal00000000 8 Liverpool00000000 9 Manchester United00000000 10 Paris Saint Germain00000000 11 Napoli00000000 12 Slavia Praha00000000 13 Lens00000000 14 Slovan Bratislava00000000 W D W W 15 Bayern Mnchen00000000 16 AS Roma00000000 17 PSV Eindhoven00000000 18 Feyenoord00000000 19 Barcelona00000000 20 Atletico Madrid00000000 21 VfB Stuttgart00000000 22 Viking00000000 W D 23 Bodo/Glimt00000000 W W W D 24 Sporting CP00000000 25 Galatasaray00000000 26 Fenerbahe00000000 W D W W 27 Shakhtar Donetsk00000000 28 Como00000000 29 RB Leipzig00000000 30 Sabah FA00000000 W L W L 31 Villarreal100123-10 L 32 Lille100123-10 L 33 Club Brugge KV100123-10 L 34 Inter100112-10 L 35 Lask Linz100101-10 L 36 FC Porto100102-20 L Position 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 : Promotion Champions League (Play Offs: 1/8-finals) Position 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 : Promotion Champions League (Play Offs: 1/16-finals) Team News for Manchester United v SabahMatthijs de Ligt (back), Manuel Ugarte (knee), Carlos Baleba (ankle), Amad Diallo (ankle) and Tom Heaton (hamstring) are all unavailable for United.Marcus Rashford came off with a knock in the 2-2 draw against Everton but was involved in training on Wednesday.Sabah have no new injury issues for the game.Expected line-ups for Manchester United v SabahManchester United: Lammens; Dalot, Yoro, Martinez, Mazraoui; Santos, Mainoo; Mbeumo, Fernandes, Cunha; SeskoSabah: Pokatilov; Solvet, Dashdamirov, Puchacz, Zedadka; Rakhmonaliev, Isaev, Lepinjica, Parris; Mickels, SimicRecent Form & Stats for Manchester United v Sabah Recent Results : Manchester United Premier League Everton EVE D 2 2 2026-09-06 Manchester United MUN Premier League Manchester United MUN W 5 2 2026-08-30 Ipswich IPS Premier League Hull City HUL L 2 0 2026-08-22 Manchester United MUN Premier League Brighton BRI W 0 3 2026-05-24 Manchester United MUN Premier League Manchester United MUN W 3 2 2026-05-17 Nottingham Forest NOT United are set to face an Azerbaijani side for the first time ever in European competition.In major European competition, English teams have never lost against sides from Azerbaijan in 11 previous meetings (W10 D1), with all 11 coming against Qarabag between 2015-16 and 2025-26.United havent won their first game in any of their last four major European seasons (D1 L3) since winning 2-1 away at Paris Saint-Germain in their first game of the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League.United last featured in the Champions League in the 2023-24 campaign, when they were eliminated in the group stage. The Red Devils have won just one of their last nine games in the competition (D3 L5).Sabah will feature in a major European competition for the first time in their history and become just the second team from Azerbaijan to play in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League, following Qarabag (eliminated in group stage in 2017-18, reached play-offs in 2025-26).This game will be four years and 291 days since Carricks first Champions League game as manager, in his caretaker spell with United in November 2021 (2-0 win over Villarreal). Only Gian Piero Gasperini (8y 4d, 2011-19), Vincenzo Montella (6y 350d, 2011-18) and Sergei Semak (5y 182d, 2014-19) have had a bigger gap between their first two games.Sabah boss Dambrauskas will be the first ever Lithuanian to manage in the Champions League he has lost five of his seven major European games (W1 D1) during spells with Ludogorets and Omonia Nicosia. The last Lithuanian player to feature in the Champions League was Deividas Semberas in December 2011 for CSKA Moscow.Rashford has been involved in 25 goals in 48 Champions League appearances (17 goals, 8 assists). However, Rashford averages a goal or assist more regularly not playing for United (one every 89 minutes for Aston Villa and Barcelona) than he does while playing for the Red Devils (one every 135 minutes).Bruno Fernandes has been involved in 15 goals in 19 Champions League appearances for United (6 goals, 9 assists), scoring or assisting every 100 minutes. Among players to play 500+ minutes, only Ruud van Nistelrooy (one every 79 minutes) has scored or assisted more regularly.Where to Watch Manchester United v Sabah: TV and online streamsManchester United v Sabah kicks off at 8:00pm on Thursday. It will be broadcast on TNT Sports 1 and will be available to stream via HBO Max. Sky subscribers with a TNT package included can also stream the game via Sky Go.Prediction for Manchester United v SabahTougher tests will await for United in the Champions League, and they should be able to get through this one in relatively routine fashion. Match PredictionManchester United 2 0 Sabah FA Responsible GamblingGambling should always be approached as entertainment, not as a way to generate income. If you ever feel that gambling is becoming a problem, there are several organisations you can contact for free, confidential support.National Gambling Helpline: 0808 8020 133 (free, 8 am to midnight, 7 days a week)GamCare: www.gamcare.org.ukGambleAware: gambleaware.orgGamStop: www.gamstop.co.uk (free self-exclusion service)Tools available through bet365 include deposit limits, session time reminders, loss limits, self-exclusion and Reality Checks. These can be accessed via the Safer Gambling section of your account at any time. 18+ only. Please gamble responsibly. 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