Manchester United began their Champions League campaign with a convincing victory over FC Sabah at Old Trafford last week.
The Red Devils went into the fixture as strong favourites against the Azerbaijani outfit and ultimately lived up to expectations with a comfortable win.
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Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Sesko were all on target during the opening 45 minutes, giving Michael Carrick’s team a commanding three-goal advantage at half-time.
Lisandro Martinez then made it four shortly after the restart, with United seeing out the remainder of the game without conceding as they secured a 4-0 victory.
The result further underlined their status as one of the teams being considered among the contenders for Europe’s most prestigious club competition this season.
🚨 Manchester United players have reportedly been instructed to only shake hands with the paying “VIPs” behind the rope, while ignoring other fans because they “haven’t paid.” 🤬
Absolutely embarrassing. Every United fan deserves to feel valued and respected. 🔴
[@oleole1999]…
— Bigstan_utd. (@Bigstan_utd1) September 14, 2026
Although United supporters were pleased by what they saw from their team during the match, footage recorded before kick-off has since gone viral on social media and generated considerable criticism.
TNT shared footage showing United defender Noussair Mazraoui speaking with reporter Olivia Buzaglo while entering the stadium, with several of his teammates visible behind him.
Fans lined both sides of the walkway, with hundreds of supporters gathered on one side after reportedly waiting for hours for an opportunity to see their favourite players arrive.
On the other side of the barrier stood a smaller group of VIP guests who had paid for the opportunity to be closer to the players.
Several United stars, including Martinez, Cunha and Sesko, appeared to acknowledge and interact with the paying guests while walking past the supporters who had waited for hours.
The footage quickly drew criticism from sections of the United fanbase, with some supporters even claiming that the club had instructed its players to only stop and shake hands with the VIP guests positioned behind the barrier.
Manchester United have rejected those accusations. BBC journalist Simon Stone wrote on X: “Accusations [that] Man Utd are telling players to stop for VIPs on arrival at Old Trafford ahead of games being rejected by [the] club. Say players don’t have as much time to stop pre-match now due to changed arrival times but that many players (and also Carrick) pose for selfies etc when they leave.”
United return to action on Wednesday evening when they face in-form Brighton & Hove Albion in the third round of the Carabao Cup.
Carrick’s side will then make the trip to Craven Cottage on Sunday evening for a Premier League meeting with Fulham. The Red Devils currently sit 13th in the table, having collected four points from their opening four league fixtures.
United will subsequently have a three-week break before returning on October 10, when they host struggling Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford.
