Manchester United got back to winning ways on Thursday evening by beating Moldovan outfit Sheriff Tiraspol 2-0 in Chisinau.
Erik ten Hag's side eased to their first Europa League victory of the season thanks to goals from Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo. It was the perfect response from the Red Devils after their disappointing 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad at Old Trafford last week. They will be hoping for another three points when they face Manchester City on October 2.
Understandably, United's latest victory is dominating the headlines. But what are the main talking points from that European triumph? Here are the biggest stories from Old Trafford.
Sancho wants World Cup spot
Sancho is refusing to give up on his World Cup dream after being left out of England's squad for this month's internationals. The Three Lions take on Italy and Germany in the Nations League - the last internationals before Gareth Southgate names his World Cup squad.
The 22-year-old winger was a surprise omission from Southgate's latest squad after scoring three goals in the opening weeks of the season, yet Sancho knows he can still force his way into the fold with a solid run of games between now and November. Marcus Rashford was also left out of the squad, although he is currently nursing an injury.
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"It’s unfortunate I didn’t get the call-up, but I just have to focus on myself and just keep on working hard week in, week out," said Sancho after United's win against Sheriff. "That’s what I’m going to do. For sure, I have to make sure I’m ready."
On Sancho's omission, Ten Hag said: "It's not up to me, it's the manager of England. I cannot be in his seat, I don't want to do it. They [Sancho and Rashford] are progressing, they are starting the season well, they will progress even more - I am convinced of that."
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Ronaldo's remarkable run continues
Ronaldo's goal against Sheriff means he's scored inside the opening two months of the season for an 18th consecutive year (at club level). The Portuguese superstar failed to find the net in his first seven games for United this term but has now broke his duck.
Ten Hag was glad to see Ronaldo finally get his goal. "Ronaldo needed that goal," he said. "Many times he came close, but he wanted that so much. We are happy for him and the team wanted to bring him a goal. You know that Cristiano will score a penalty."
Ronaldo's goal on Thursday evening was also his first ever in the Europa League. The 37-year-old hasn't played in the competition since the 2002/03 campaign, when it was known as the UEFA Cup. Ronaldo was a Sporting Lisbon player at the time.
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Ten Hag wants more from Sancho
More on Sancho now, as Ten Hag has demanded "much more improvement" from him. Sancho scored just five goals for United last season, which was his debut campaign with the Old Trafford club following his £73million move from Borussia Dortmund in July 2021.
Ten Hag wants Sancho to replicate his blistering form in Germany, where he scored 38 goals and provided 51 assists in 104 Bundesliga games - winning the DFB-Pokal and DFL-Supercup.
"I’m really pleased [for Jadon Sancho]," said Ten Hag after the win against Sheriff. "Another goal... he’s doing well, but I think there’s much more room for improvement for him, because he has so many skills."
Ten Hag also believed Sancho can be more flexible. "In preparing the goal with Bruno [Fernandes], he [Sancho] was in the centre-forward position," he added. "We did some experiments, bringing Tyrell [Malacia] on the right and Luke [Shaw] on the left, we can be very able, we need that in the season."
