Five-time UEFA Europa League champions Sevilla ignited their search for a sixth crown in superb fashion on Thursday after they opened their 2018-19 account by battering Standard Liege 5-1.
There were also group-opening victories for 2013 winners Chelsea and 2017 quarter-finalists Besiktas, who beat PAOK and Sarpsborg 08, respectively.
Steven Gerrard's Rangers snatched a valuable point from their trip to Villarreal, meanwhile, as Scott Arfield and Kyle Lafferty scored to pull the Scots from behind on two occasions to give them early hope in Group G.
They weren't the only comeback story in Thursday's round of early results, however, as 10-man Eintracht Frankfurt responded from a goal down to beat Marseille 2-1 in France.