Manchester United return to Europa League action away to Cypriot outfit Omonia Nicosia on Thursday evening, with the Red Devils looking to put Sunday’s dismal derby day drubbing behind them with a positive result against Neil Lennon’s side.

The Old Trafford outfit were simply put to the sword by their relentless neighbours at the weekend, with hat-tricks from both Phil Foden and the seemingly unstoppable Erling Haaland bringing United crashing back down to earth after a run of four straight victories in the Premier League had sparked renewed optimism.

Much of the discussion post-match was, inevitably, centred around the lack of involvement for Portuguese icon Cristiano Ronaldo, with the 37-year-old left on the bench for that 6-3 mauling as a mark of “respect” to his stellar career, in the words of Ten Hag.

While Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane suggested that his former club were showing “disrespect” to the veteran marksman, the former Juventus man has seemingly not warranted a starting berth of late as a result of his dismal form for both club and country.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has netted just once for United so far this season – after angling for a move away over the summer – while he also distinctly underwhelmed while on international duty of late, having done little to push for a more prominent role back at the Theatre of Dreams.

Despite the potential repercussions of again leaving the legendary forward resigned to the bench this evening, Ten Hag may well have his eye on another figure to lead the line from the start, with Anthony Martial having impressed on his return from injury at the Etihad.

While the game was seemingly already over at the time of the Frenchman’s second-half introduction, the 26-year-old no doubt gave supporters something to cheer about having netted a clinical brace late on, proving a rare shining light on an otherwise grim day against what was a ferocious Manchester City side.

The former Monaco man has already doubled his Premier League tally from last term as a result of that late cameo, reacting quickly to head home after Fred’s initial effort had been parried by opposition stopper Ederson, before ruthlessly lashing home into the roof of the net from the penalty spot.

Although those efforts were little consolation as far as United were concerned, they showcased just what the club have been missing so far this term, with the £250k-per-week ace having been hampered by injury in recent months.

The fleet-footed “Ferrari” – as dubbed by Owen Hargreaves – made a telling impact on his only other appearance in the win over Liverpool, teeing up teammate Marcus Rashford in the build-up to the Englishman’s second-half strike.

Such a moment of quality had come after an impressive pre-season for Martial – with three goals while on tour – with the 30-cap menace looking reborn after previously sliding down the pecking order at the club, having spent the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla.

With the £14.4m-rated ace now in need of minutes to get up to speed, as Ten Hag alluded to, it could well be worthwhile to hand him a start for this group stage clash, ahead of the misfiring Ronaldo.