Preview: Manchester United vs Sabah - prediction, team news, lineups

Manchester United will be aiming to begin their 2026-27 Champions League league phase campaign on a winning note when they welcome Azerbaijani outfit Sabah on Thursday night.

This is Man United's first Champions League campaign in three seasons, while it will be the first time that Sabah have competed at this level of European football.

Match preview

Man United were absent from European competition in 2025-26 for the first time since 2014-15, and this will represent their first Champions League campaign in three seasons and their 26th overall, which is an English record.

In 2023-24, Man United finished fourth in a section which included Bayern Munich, Copenhagen and Galatasaray, and there is undoubtedly pressure on head coach Michael Carrick to deliver a positive Champions League campaign, but winning the trophy this season is a long shot.

The 20-time English champions will enter this match off the back of a 2-2 draw with Everton on Sunday; four points have been secured from three games this season, which has left them in 11th spot in the Premier League table, five points off leaders Manchester City.

The Red Devils have won the European Cup on three previous occasions, first lifting the famous trophy in 1968, before triumphing in 1999 and 2008, while their last progression to the knockout round came in 2021-22, losing to Atletico Madrid in the round of 16.

Man United will also take on Atletico Madrid, Como, Roma, Sporting Lisbon, RB Leipzig, Bayern Munich and Villarreal in the league phase of this season's Champions League.

Sabah, meanwhile, began their 2026-27 Champions League campaign at the start of July, already taking to the field on eight occasions in the competition this season.

The Azerbaijani outfit have beaten TNS, KuPS, Aarhus and Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the 2026-27 Champions League qualifying rounds to secure a spot at this stage for the first time, and they will enter the match off the back of a thumping 5-0 win over Zira in the league.

Valdas Dambrauskas' side, who are the reigning Azerbaijani champions, have made a strong start to their domestic campaign, picking up nine points from three matches to top the division.

The Owls will be coming up against a Man United side that have only won one of their last seven Champions League group stage matches, suffering four defeats in the process, and they can take confidence from the Red Devils' defensive problems this term.

Sabah have won six of their eight Champions League matches this season, keeping four clean sheets, and they are one of four teams in this season's competition making their debut in the league phase alongside Como, LASK and Viking.

Manchester United form (all competitions):

Sabah form (Champions League):

Sabah form (all competitions):

Team News

Man United will again be without the services of Matthijs de Ligt (back), Manuel Ugarte (knee), Carlos Baleba (ankle), Amad Diallo (ankle) and Tom Heaton (hamstring) for their Champions League opener with Sabah.

Marcus Rashford also needs to be assessed, with the attacker brought off against Everton in the second half due to a slight issue.

Carrick is expected to make changes to his side ahead of the Manchester derby against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon, with Leny Yoro, Noussair Mazraoui, Andrey Santos and Benjamin Sesko potentially being introduced.

Sesko continued to build his minutes off the bench against Everton, finding the back of the net late on, and the striker could now be brought into the XI.

Sabah, meanwhile, have a fully-fit squad for the European clash at Old Trafford.

Joy-Lance Mickels has been in outstanding form this season, scoring eight goals and registering one assist in 11 appearances, and the 32-year-old will feature in the final third of the field.

Veljko Simic (seven goals, one assist this season) will be another danger for the visitors on Thursday evening, while there is also expected to be a spot in the side for Kaheem Parris.

Manchester United possible starting lineup:

Lammens; Dalot, Yoro, Martinez, Mazraoui; Santos, Mainoo; Mbeumo, Fernandes, Cunha; Sesko

Sabah possible starting lineup:

Pokatilov; Solvet, Dashdamirov, Puchacz, Zedadka; Rakhmonaliev, Isaev, Lepinjica, Parris; Mickels, Simic

We say: Manchester United 3-1 Sabah

It is difficult to predict a clean sheet for Man United given their defensive frailties, but we are expecting the Red Devils to get their Champions League campaign off to a winning start.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.