Man Utd ease past Basel 3-0, Chelsea too win big on return

Substitute Marouane Fellaini proved an unlikely source of inspiration as Manchester United comfortably defeated Basel 3-0 on their return to the Champions League on Tuesday.

Fellaini, a replacement for the injured Paul Pogba, gave United a 35th-minute lead at a drizzly Old Trafford and teed up Marcus Rashford for the hosts’ third goal after Romelu Lukaku had struck early in the second period.

It was United’s first Champions League game since December 2015, with Jose Mourinho’s side having engineered a return to the competition by winning the Europa League last season.

Basel had previously proved a thorn in United’s side, eliminating them from the Champions League in 2011-12, and they inflicted a surprise defeat upon Mourinho in the first European game of his second Chelsea stint in 2013. Michy Batshuayi added a goal in the 76th and the sixth was an own goal by defender Maksim Medvedev.

Thiago Alcantara’s second-half strike helped an underwhelming Bayern Munich see off 10-man Anderlecht 3-0 in their opening Champions League group match on Tuesday.

After Robert Lewandowski converted an early penalty, Thiago turned the tie decisively Bayern’s way before Joshua Kimmich grabbed a late third at a sold-out Allianz Arena.

However, despite playing nearly 80 minutes with the numerical advantage following Sven Kums’s early dismissal, this was not a convincing display by Bayern against a limited Anderlecht side.

“There was no tempo to our game - we needed to show a bit more desire,” admitted Bayern winger Arjen Robben. “The crowd deserved more, we have to give more. We should have finished them when they had a man sent off.” He added.