Manchester United finally gave their supporters something to smile about.
Four goals.
A clean sheet.
A comfortable Champions League victory.
And, perhaps most importantly, a performance that gave Michael Carrick and his players some much-needed confidence.
But here is the problem:
I still don’t know how good Manchester United actually are.
And Sunday could give us the answer.
United returned to the Champions League on Thursday night and dismantled Sabah 4–0 at Old Trafford, with Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes, Benjamin Sesko and Lisandro Martinez all finding the net. The victory was United’s first Champions League win in nearly three years and gave the club the perfect start to its return to Europe’s biggest competition.
On the surface, everything looks fantastic.
But football isn’t played on the surface.
And if Manchester United fans are being completely honest, this is not the game that will tell us whether this team has really turned a corner.
Manchester City will.
The 4–0 Scoreline Looks Better Than the Test
Let’s get one thing straight.
United deserved to win.
They were the better team.
They scored four goals, created plenty of chances and controlled the game for long periods. Opta recorded 21 United shots and an expected-goals figure of 3.67 compared with Sabah’s 11 shots and 0.92 expected goals.
So this wasn’t some lucky victory.
But Sabah are Champions League newcomers from Azerbaijan.
This was a team experiencing the biggest stage in European club football for the first time.
And there were moments when United were given a reminder that even a supposedly comfortable game can change quickly.
Joy-Lance Mickels had a huge opportunity to equalize after United took the lead. His header from inside the six-yard box went wide when he really should have done better.
Imagine that chance goes in.
Suddenly the atmosphere changes.
Suddenly United have to respond.
Instead, Bruno Fernandes scored in the 42nd minute, Benjamin Sesko made it 3–0 three minutes later, and the contest was effectively finished before halftime.
That’s the difference between a team that is struggling and one with confidence.
United punished Sabah.
But the bigger question is whether they can punish Manchester City.
Benjamin Sesko Is Becoming Very Interesting
One of the biggest positives from the game was Benjamin Sesko.
The striker scored United’s third goal and continues to make a strong argument for more responsibility in Carrick’s attack.
Sesko came off the bench and scored against Everton before getting his first start of the season against Sabah. He took his opportunity, scoring after Bryan Mbeumo put him through on goal.
And that creates an interesting selection problem for Carrick.
United have options.
Matheus Cunha scored.
Sesko scored.
Bruno Fernandes scored.
Joshua Zirkzee came on and produced an impressive cameo.
Marcus Rashford is also available.
Suddenly, Carrick has a different problem from the one United have had in recent seasons.
Instead of desperately searching for attacking solutions, he may have several players demanding minutes.
That’s a good problem.
But City will provide a much tougher test.
Against Sabah, United could afford to push their full-backs forward and take risks.
Against City, those spaces can be punished immediately.
Bruno Fernandes Is Still the Heart of This Team
There is another reason United supporters should feel encouraged.
Bruno Fernandes continues to look like the player this team revolves around.
He scored against Sabah and combined particularly well with Youri Tielemans, who delivered one of his strongest performances at Old Trafford.
Fernandes isn’t simply a player who scores goals.
He’s the player United look toward when the match becomes difficult.
That matters because Sunday could become exactly that kind of game.
Manchester derbies aren’t normal Premier League matches.
The pressure is different.
The atmosphere is different.
Every mistake gets magnified.
And if United fall behind, the response will tell us far more about this team than what happened against Sabah.
The Biggest Concern Is Still the Premier League
This is where I remain skeptical.
United’s Champions League victory was excellent.
But their Premier League start has been anything but convincing.
They have only one league win from their first three matches, while losing to Hull City and drawing with Everton.
That is the reality.
You can’t completely erase that with one European victory.
United needed this win.
They needed the goals.
They needed the clean sheet.
They needed the confidence.
But they also need consistency.
That’s something this club has struggled to find.
One good performance can create excitement.
Three or four consecutive good performances create belief.
And that’s what United need now.
Carrick Has a Huge Decision to Make
Michael Carrick deserves credit for getting the team into the Champions League and giving United a sense of stability.
Last season, he guided the club to a third-place Premier League finish after taking over as interim manager, winning 12 of 17 matches during that spell. That success raised expectations when he became the permanent manager.
But that also means the pressure has changed.
Carrick is no longer the temporary solution.
Now he’s responsible for building something.
That means his decisions will be judged differently.
Who starts up front?
Does Sesko keep his place?
Where does Cunha play?
How does he use Bruno?
Can United defend against City’s movement?
And perhaps most importantly:
Can he make United consistently good rather than occasionally impressive?
That’s the real challenge.
The Manchester Derby Is the Real Test
This is why I don’t want to get carried away with the 4–0 victory.
The timing of the result is almost perfect.
United have just restored confidence.
Now they face the team across the city.
Manchester City are entering the derby with a perfect start to the Premier League campaign, while United are still trying to find consistency.
That creates an enormous opportunity.
If United beat City, suddenly Thursday’s victory looks much more important.
It won’t just have been a routine Champions League win.
It will have been the beginning of a turnaround.
Imagine United beating City after starting the league season with only one victory in three matches.
The narrative changes overnight.
Fans start believing.
Players start believing.
Carrick gains even more authority.
And the pressure that has been building around the club starts to disappear.
But if United lose badly?
Then the 4–0 victory will immediately feel less significant.
People will say exactly what I am saying now:
It was Sabah.
There Are Still Reasons to Believe
Despite my doubts, I’m not saying United are bad.
Far from it.
There are genuine signs that this team could become dangerous.
Cunha is capable of creating problems.
Sesko looks increasingly comfortable.
Fernandes remains one of the team’s most important players.
Mbeumo provides another attacking option.
Mainoo has impressed in recent matches.
Tielemans is beginning to look comfortable.
And Carrick appears to have more options than he did previously.
The pieces are there.
The question is whether they can finally fit together consistently.
That’s something we haven’t seen enough of yet.
My Take: Don’t Celebrate the Turnaround Just Yet
Manchester United deserved to celebrate Thursday night.
A 4–0 Champions League victory after nearly three years away from the competition is significant.
But I’m still not ready to declare that United are back.
Not yet.
Because the biggest question isn’t whether United can beat Sabah.
It’s whether they can beat teams that can actually expose their weaknesses.
That’s why the Manchester derby is so important.
If United walk into Old Trafford on Sunday and compete with City — or better yet, beat them — then I’ll start believing.
If Sesko scores again, Fernandes controls the game, Cunha creates problems and United’s defense holds against a much stronger attack, then we may finally have evidence that this team is becoming something serious.
But until then, I’m keeping my excitement under control.
Manchester United have shown us what they can do.
Now they need to show us that they can do it consistently.
Because beating Sabah 4–0 is impressive.
Beating Manchester City would be a statement.
And that’s the result that could finally convince the doubters that Manchester United are heading somewhere special again.
For now?
The 4–0 win is encouraging.
But I’m still waiting for the proof.
