Valdas Dambrauskas, the manager of Azerbaijani football club Sabah, is set to make history by stepping onto the pitch at Old Trafford as a manager in the UEFA Champions League. This marks a full-circle moment in his career, as he first came into contact with the iconic stadium through Manchester United Soccer Schools nearly 20 years ago. Dambrauskas, who once visited Old Trafford with children from the school, now finds himself in charge of a team that will face some of Europe’s biggest clubs. He described the experience as “beyond my imagination.” Dambrauskas’ journey to this point began in 2002 when he won 4,000 litas (about £725) on the Lithuanian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. He used the prize money to move to London, where he started his football career. While the story of his gameshow win has recently resurfaced on social media, Dambrauskas has emphasized that his career, not the game show, should be the focus of the narrative. He arrived in London on a student visa with limited English and spent the next eight years working multiple jobs while pursuing coaching opportunities. Over the years, Dambrauskas volunteered with community football projects and worked with organizations like the Access to Sports Project and London Tigers, which aimed to provide football opportunities to underprivileged children. He later managed teams in non-league football and earned the first Lithuanian UEFA coaching license through the London Football Association. His career took off in 2004 when Manchester United Soccer Schools gave him a chance, and he spent the next five years coaching residential courses across Europe before moving on to clubs like Fulham and Brentford. After leaving England in 2010, Dambrauskas returned to Lithuania and rose through the ranks, eventually becoming the manager of Zalgiris Vilnius, where he won multiple domestic titles. He later managed clubs in seven different countries, including Latvia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, and Hungary. His most recent success came with Sabah, an Azerbaijani club based in Masazir, a small town with a population of just 19,000. Sabah, formed in 2017, has made history by qualifying for the Champions League, a feat Dambrauskas called “beyond imagination.” The club’s home ground does not meet UEFA standards, so they will host matches at Baku’s Olympic Stadium, where they will face teams like Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona, and Napoli. Dambrauskas has praised the club’s president, Magsud Adigozalov, for the support, and he is excited about the opportunity to compete against Europe’s elite.