Carrick wary of new team
The reigning Azerbaijani champion, Sabah, will debut in the Champions League with a away match against Man United at 2:00 AM on September 11 (Vietnam time) at Old Trafford, after winning the domestic championship for the first time last season.
They have passed four stages of the qualifiers to advance to the group stage and have the opportunity to face the strongest teams in Europe. They will be Man United's first opponent, the team returning to the Champions League after 2 years of absence this season.
The match at OId Trafford will be the first meeting between the two clubs. Sabah is not rated as highly as Man United, but Carrick has anticipated the challenges from the team led by coach Valdas Dambrauskas.
Mr. Valdas once won an award in the "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" contest and used that money to study coaching. The strategist had experience in professional courses at Man United nearly 2 decades ago.
First of all, I think they are a very well-trained team, which is quite clearly shown through the ideas and principles they apply, things that can be repeated.
Obviously Sabah has won many matches in the past 12 months, they are playing with a lot of confidence. You can see how they control the ball and deploy their playing style on the field. They have very good coordination and effective pressing, so we are fully aware of the opponent and the challenges we have to face," coach Michael Carrick said.
With Man United, they also have a certain excitement after returning to the most prestigious European tournament for the first time since the 2023-2024 season. Carrick - who won this tournament with Man United in 2008 - accurately understands what playing in the Champions League means for the club.
The Champions League is a magical tournament, where we all want to participate. This is the best tournament to challenge ourselves and compete with the best. We are very happy to be here, but we are not just here to enjoy this moment, we are here to compete and go as far as possible," Carrick shared.
Notable statistics
This will be Man United's 300th match in the C1/UEFA Champions League. They are the first English club to reach this milestone. Historically, Man United has won this tournament 3 times in 1968, 1999 and 2008.
Man United has only won one of their last seven matches in the Champions League group stage/group stage (2 draws, 4 losses).
This is the 26th time Man United has participated in the Champions League group stage - the most among English clubs. This is the first time they have participated since the 2023-2024 season, when they were eliminated in the group stage.
For Sabah, this is the first time participating in a group stage/all-round knockout stage of an UEFA tournament.
They are only the second Azerbaijani club to reach the Champions League group stage/all-round stage, after Qarabağ in the 2017-2018 and 2025-2026 seasons.
Sabah won 6 out of 8 qualifying matches (2 losses).
