Photo by Marcio Machado/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
Photo by Marcio Machado/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
Manchester United are preparing for their return to the Champions League but many first-team players are inexperienced in the competition.
The start of the 2026/27 Champions League is right around the corner for Manchester United with Sabah FK up first.
Out of United’s eight Champions League opponents, Michael Carrick has been handed the easiest start to the competition on paper with an Old Trafford clash against a pot four opponent.
The Red Devils will be strong favourites to win, and supercomputer predictions have given United a solid chance of winning the Champions League this season.
But there are several first-team stars who lack Champions League experience, and United’s top scorer in the competition may come as a surprise.
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Manchester United Portraits - UEFA Champions League 2026/27
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Man United’s current top Champions League scorer
This will be United’s first Champions League campaign since 2023/24, and many of the club’s new signings since then have not experienced the top tier of European competition.
In terms of goals in the competition, it is returning star Marcus Rashford who tops the charts in this United squad.
Rashford has 17 goals in the Champions League, including five scored in Barcelona’s campaign in 2025/26.
His highest-scoring Champions League campaign was in 2020/21 under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when Rashford scored six goals in six appearances.
It includes Rashford’s Champions League hat-trick against RB Leipzig in a 5-0 thumping.
Man United’s other Champions League goalscorers
Rashford tops the list, but there are several other United stars who have found the back of the net in the Champions League.
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Bruno Fernandes – 7 Champions League goals
Benjamin Sesko – 7 Champions League goals
Youri Tielemans – 4 Champions League goals
Harry Maguire – 2 Champions League goals
Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Sesko are trailing Rashford with seven Champions League goals each. Sesko scored four goals in his last Champions League campaign in 2024/25 with RB Leipzig.