It had been 505 days since Old Trafford hosted a UEFA Champions League match, but Manchester United made its return to Europe’s most prestigious club soccer competition Tuesday after a one-year absence. Because of their fourth-place finish in the 2014/15 Premier League, they entered the UCL in the play-off round, where they were drawn against Belgian side Club Brugge.

What’s odd about this matchup was that United were designated the seeded team, but hosted the first leg; seeded teams in a two-leg tie typically host the second leg. As for the match it was a rocky start, Michael Carrick recording an own goal to give Brugge a precious away goal inside the opening 10 minutes. United’s vice-captain would be subbed later in the match, and whether or not he’s in the 11 next week will tell how much confidence Louis van Gaal has in the midfielder.

Following that rocky start, the match became dominated by one man: Memphis Depay. A solid finish to tie the game, another finish to give United a lead, and then his assist on Marouane Fellaini’s goal right as Deniz Aytekin was about to call for full-time. Depay arguably has the highest profile among Manchester United’s 2015 summer signings so far (given that Bastian Schweinsteiger is in the twilight of his career), and early on he’s proven how much he can make a difference in a match.

The second leg comes next in Belgium, with the Red Devils keeping their status as favorites to advance to the group stage. Had Fellaini’s goal not been scored in time, oddsmakers might pick the Belgian club to use the second-leg home crowd to their advantage, but Brugge will have to score at least twice if they have any hope of pulling an upset. For United, it’s three wins out of three to start the 2015/16 season, with a winnable home tie against Newcastle coming Saturday before the trip to mainland Europe. The Red Devils haven’t had a truly dominating performance yet, but they’ve gotten the results that matter, and will take confidence from that going forward.