Manchester United vs Sabah Baku: Backing Bruno to be the difference in Champions League outing

Manchester United are back where they belong, as they prepare for their return to the Champions League with an opening date against competition newcomers, Sabah Baku of Azerbaijan.

The Red Devils are set to become the first English side to record 300 matches in the Champions League, from a record 26th appearance in Europe's premier club competition.

Michael Carrick's men made a decent start to their Premier League campaign, as they recovered from their opening-day defeat away to Hull City to record a win and a draw from their three matches so far.

United must now prepare for their foray into Europe, where they have not enjoyed much success of late, recording just one win of their last nine matches in this competition specifically, but one man can inspire them to make a positive start this week – their skipper Bruno Fernandes.

Continuing where he left off

Last season, Bruno Fernandes broke the record for the most assists in a single Premier League season with 21, recording the final on the last day of the season.

It appears that the captain has started this term in a similar vein, as he made 100% accurate layoffs in the final third in their opening defeat to Hull, while he ranked the best for shots outside the box with three.

As a result, it is worth exploring Fernandes to score from outside the area against Sabah at 6.00 odds, while taking at least one shot from outside the box places him at 1.53 odds.

Considering his four shots outside the box against Ipswich Town and two against Everton, Fernandes will likely thrive against a team like Sabah, and backing him to record a minimum of three shots on target from outside the area comes in at a staggering 14.00, impossible odds to ignore.

Primed to make an impact

Fernandes has already scored a hat-trick against Ipswich and recorded an assist, which is why the anytime goalscorer bet at 1.95 odds is an option, but for additional value, it is worth considering him as the first goalscorer at 5.20 odds.

As the assist king of the league last season, and the one responsible for free-kicks and corners, Fernandes is likely to provide an assist for his teammates in this fixture, and at 1.79 odds for at least one assist, there is enough value to back him.

The 2025-26 Premier League Player of the Season excelled in his previous European campaign, topping the goalscoring charts with seven goals in 14 games, when Manchester United were in the 2024-25 Europa League.

The Portuguese international ranked third in that season for the four assists he provided, while the four Champions League campaigns that he has been involved in for both United and Sporting sees him average 0.80 goal involvements per 90, which is why it is difficult to avoid backing him in any of the goals or assists markets.

As a right-footed midfielder, with Carrick deploying him just behind the forward, Fernandes can be backed to score with his favoured foot at 2.03 odds.

champions league predictions this week