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How Manchester United's players rated on Champions League return

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A comfortable win for Manchester United on their return to the Champions League  Here's out their players rated in a comfortable 4-0 over Sabah from Azerbaijan Author | Olivia T Stadium | Old Trafford Senne Lammens: Not the busiest of nights for the Belgian, who dealt comfortably with everything required of him. 6 Noussair Mazraoui: Got forward regularly, with an early shot blocked before another effort found the side netting. Was fortunate to escape punishment when he failed to spot Joy-Lance Mickels dropping towards the far post, where the Sabah player was left with a clear header in the first half. 6 Leny Yoro: A big season awaits the young Frenchman, who needs to find the consistency that has so far been missing during his United career. Had limited opportunity to shine but made no real errors. 7 Lisandro Martinez: Led United's defence and helped guide Yoro through the game. Marked his return to the scoresheet by pouncing on a loose ball after the Sabah defence hesitated. 7...

Chelsea held by Qarabag despite Garnacho goal

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Qarabag 2 - 2 Chelsea Chelsea escaped suffering a historic loss to Qarabag. Author | Lauren W Stadium | Tofiq BÉ™hramov adına Respublika stadionu Alejandro Garnacho's second-half equaliser meant Chelsea avoided the embarrassment of becoming the first English team to lose to the Azerbaijani side. Garnacho equalised having come on as one of three half-time substitutes with his side 2-1 down after goals from Leandro Andrade and Marko Jankovic had put the hosts ahead following Estevao Willian's early opener for the Blues. Qarabag had lost all seven of their previous matches against English opposition. The last time they were in the Champions League, they faced Chelsea and lost both matches by an aggregate score of 10-0 and secured just two points from six matches. However, they gave Enzo Maresca's side a real scare at the packed 32,000-seater Tofiq Bahramov Stadium, with a squad worth just £22m compared with Chelsea’s, valued at £1.5bn according to figures from Transfermarkt. It...

Qarabag stun Benfica with fantastic comeback

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Benfica 2 - 3 Qarabag Qarabag staged a remarkable comeback in Lisbon to become the first Azerbaijani side to win a match in the Champions League proper. Author | Ed Stadium | Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica Making their first appearance in Europe’s elite competition in eight years, Gurban Gurbanov’s team fell two goals behind inside 16 minutes after strikes from Enzo Barrenechea and Vangelis Pavlidis put Benfica firmly in control. Leandro Andrade reduced the deficit on the half-hour with a fine finish before Kady Borges went close, clipping the post. Three minutes after the restart, the visitors stunned the Estadio da Luz when Marko Jankovic split the defence with a precise pass and Camilo Duran, on his Champions League debut, found the far corner. READ MORE |  Juventus and Dortmund play out a classic in Turin READ MORE |  Mbappe penalties rescue Real Madrid The decisive moment came five minutes from time. Substitute Oleksii Kashchuk collected the ball with his back to g...

UEL: Spurs start Europa League campaign with a win

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Tottenham Hotspur 3 - 0 Qarabag Tottenham kicked off their Europa League campaign with an impressive win against Qarabag, despite being reduced to 10 men just seven minutes into the match. This was great preparation as Spurs will face an important few weeks in different competitions. For this match, there was a 35-minute delay to the start due to various travel disruptions across London. A closer look at what happened Spurs suffered an early setback when defender Radu Dragusin was sent off for a last-man foul on Juninho, who was through on goal. Nevertheless, five minutes later Brennan Johnson found the net, capitalising on Qarabag's sloppy attempt to play out from the back. Dominic Solanke set up the 23-year-old, who calmly slotted the ball into the bottom corner, marking his third goal in as many games. Tottenham doubled their lead in the 52nd minute through Pape Sarr, who controlled a loose ball at the far post before firing it home. Qarabag were awarded a penalty just three...