Paul Pogba scored twice as Manchester United eased to a comfortable 4-1 Europa League victory against Fenerbahce at Old Trafford on Thursday.
Wayne Rooney was back in the starting lineup for the first time since Sept. 21, but Pogba was given the opportunity to give United the lead from the penalty spot.
United were awarded a second penalty just moments later and Jose Mourinho chose Anthony Martial to shoot and make it 2-0.
Pogba then bent a first-time hit into the top corner on the stroke of half-time after being teed up by Jesse Lingard — marking the first time the midfielder had scored two or more goals in a game since November 2014.
United started the second half exactly how they finished the first, scoring another as Lingard got in on the action, picking out the bottom corner of the net with a sweet strike from the edge of the area.
Robin van Persie, making his first return to Old Trafford since leaving United in 2015, did pull one back for the visitors, converting from yards out after losing Luke Shaw, with the home support applauding the finish.
The victory for the Red Devils sees them move up to second in Group A, leapfrogging Fenerbahce in the process, who they now lead by two points.
Feyenoord moved to the top of Group A with a 1-0 victory at home to Zorya Luhansk.
Nicolai Jorgensen scored the only goal of the game for the hosts in the 55th minute, finding the back of the net after being set up by Bilal Basacikoglu.
Ten-man Inter Milan recorded a 1-0 victory over Southampton at the San Siro amid a tumultuous week for the Serie A side in Group K.
Frank de Boer’s side, besieged by fans and media after the publication of captain Mauro Icardi’s controversial autobiography, earned their first points of the campaign through a wonderful Antonio Candreva strike in the 67th minute.
Moving into the penalty area, the Italy international sensationally rifled his first-time shot off Davide Santon’s bounced cross past Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster and into the roof of the net for the decisive score.
Inter were forced to defend the lead a man down as 10 minutes later Marcelo Brozovic was shown a second yellow for a bad foul on Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. But Southampton could not find a way past a superb Samir Handanovic to salvage a point in Milan.
Despite Inter’s win, Sparta Prague went top of Group K with a 1-0 defeat of Hapoel Be’er Sheva at the Turner Stadium.
Matej Pulkrab earned the visitors the victory in the 71st minute, turning in Borek Dockal’s pass from close range.
The win gives the Czech Republic side six points from three matches, two points ahead of Hapoel and Southampton in the group.
Shakhtar Donetsk stayed perfect in Group H with a 5-0 victory over Gent.
Viktor Kovalenko opened the scoring with a 40-yard lob when the Gent keeper was caught outside the box, and Facundo Ferreyra doubled the advantage on the half-hour mark.
Bernard added a third from close range just after half-time before Taison and Maksym Malyshev added to the rout late on.
In the other Group H game Konyaspor and Braga are both still without a win after a 1-1 draw in Turkey, Deni Milosevic opening the scoring for the hosts before Ahmed Hassan Koka’s 55th-minute equaliser.
Yevheniy Konoplyanka’s 10th-minute volley was enough to keep Schalke perfect in Group I with a 1-0 win at Krasnodar.
Meanwhile, Nice got their first Group I win — and the club’s first ever away win in Europe — as they prevailed 1-0 at Salzburg, Alassane Plea scoring on 13 minutes in the absence of Mario Balotelli.
Villarreal fought back from a two-goal deficit to draw 2-2 with Osmanlispor and maintain their place atop the Group L table.
A two-minute brace by Raul Rusescu had the La Liga side on the ropes after 24 minutes. But a 53rd-minute red card for Mehmet Guven opened the doors for the Yellow Submarine to crawl back.
Alfred Ndiaye struck back almost immediately for the visitors, volleying home Samu Castillejo’s corner at the near post on 55 minutes. And summer signing Alexandre Pato bagged the equaliser a quarter-hour from time, slotting home Antonio Rukavina’s cross from the centre of the box.
FC Zurich assumed second place in the group with a 1-1 draw at Steaua Bucharest.
Bojan Golubovic had the hosts in front on 63 minutes with a fine left-footed shot from Adrian Popa’s cross. However the visitors secured the point four minutes from time through Moussa Kone — the Senegal forward stretching to turn in Dzengis Cavusevic’s cross at the near post.
The draw gives Zurich four points from three matches, while last-placed Steaua have just two.
Athletic Bilbao suffered their second defeat in Group F, falling 2-0 away to Genk.
Jakub Brabec turned a defender and scored in the 40th minute and Onyinye Ndidi added a second goal seven minutes from time to make the Belgian side surprise group leaders.
They hold a two-point lead over Sassuolo, who rallied to earn a 1-1 draw at Rapid Vienna .
Louis Schaub scored from close range after just seven minutes, but the Serie A side were able to respond thanks to a Thomas Schrammel’s own goal on 66 minutes.
Nikola Kalinic scored twice to help Fiorentina win 3-1 at Slovan Liberec and widen their lead in Group H.
The midfielder scored in the eighth and 23rd minutes to put the Italian side in front before Petr Sevcik got a goal back for the hosts, who missed a few good chances to equalise.
But Khouma Babacar’s 70th-minute goal provided some breathing room for Fiorentina, and Liberec’s hopes ended when Radim Breite was sent off with six minutes to play for a bad challenge on Matias Vecino.
Also in Group H, Qarabag earned a first win of the group stage, 2-0 over Greek side PAOK thanks to Dani Quintana’s 56-minute goal before Rahid Amirquliev’s late second.
Three teams are level on points atop Group C after Mainz let a lead slip in a 1-1 draw with Anderlecht.
Yunus Malli’s 10th-minute penalty had put the Bundesliga club ahead before the Belgian side answered through Lukasz Teodorczyk.
Both sides are level on five points along with Ligue 1’s Saint-Etienne, who needed an own goal from Ricardinho to earn a slim 1-0 win at home against point-less Qabala.
Ajax secured a 2-2 draw away to Celta Vigo to maintain a two-point lead atop Group G.
Hakim Ziyech gave the Dutch side the lead on 22 minutes only for Celta to equalise through Andreu Fontas seven minutes later.
And when Amin Younes again put Ajax ahead on 71 minutes, Fabian Orellana was able to pull the Spanish club back level again with eight minutes to play.
Victor Ibarbo gave Panathinaikos a two-goal lead but the Greek side could only settle for a 2-2 draw at Standard Liege, with both teams still seeking a win in Group G.
Ibarbo turned in two passes from Sebastian Leto to put the visitors in control by the 36th minute, but Edmilson Junior got a goal back with a penalty in first-half stoppage time before Ishak Belfodil’s 82nd-minute free kick secured a point.
Dundalk‘s surprising start to Group D came to a halt when Zenit St. Petersburg rallied to win 2-1 in Ireland.
Robbie Benson scored the opener from just outside the box in the 52nd minute for Dundalk, who seemed on pace to pull off their biggest upset yet after earning a draw at AZ Alkmaar and beating Maccabi Tel Aviv.
But Zenit responded with goals from Robert Mak on 71 minutes and Giuliano six minutes later to stay perfect on nine points.
Dundalk are second on four points, one ahead of Maccabi Tel Aviv, who won 2-1 at AZ.
Ezequiel Scarione’s first-half goal for Maccabi was cancelled out by Robert Muhren’s header, but Eyal Golasa’s long-range effort on 81 points gave the Israel side their first points.
Olympiakos scored three times in a 10-minute span in the first half to cruise past Astana 4-1 in Group B.
Diogo Figueiras hit the breakthough while Tarik Elyounoussi made it 2-0, and just seconds later Seba made it three, before Junior Kabananga found a second-half consolation for the visitors.
But Roger Canas was sent off for Astana four minutes late and Seba was able to add a second goal.
Olympiakos are level on points with Young Boys atop Group B after the Swiss side used a Guillaume Hoarau hat trick to beat APOEL 3-1.
Georgios Efrem’s tremendous lobbed volley put APOEL ahead, but Hoarau equalised four minutes later.
The match stayed level until Hoarau scored shortly after missing a penalty to put Young Boys ahead for good, before completing his treble on 82 minutes.
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