Rangnick: ‘It was a very intense game’
Man United coach Ralf Rangnick spoke in his post-match press conference about the 4-2 win in the Premier League against Leeds United.
Atletico Madrid vs Manchester United: Line-ups
Atletico Madrid
Manchester United
Hard to Separate These Two Teams
#1
Diego Simeone’s side are currently down in fifth spot in the table, 15 points behind leaders Real Madrid, so the Champions League is their only realistic chance of silverware this term, and they might need to win the competition to secure a position in next season’s leading European cup competition.
#2
The Red and Whites have only faced Man United on one previous occasion, tackling them in the second round of the 1991-92 Cup Winners’ Cup, with the Spanish outfit winning 4-1 on aggregate, but they twice lost to English opposition – Liverpool – in the group stages of this season’s Champions League.
#3
Atletico also lost to Chelsea in last season’s round of 16, but they have reached the quarter-finals or better in five of their last eight Champions League campaigns under Simeone, while the capital giants have been victorious in nine of their 12 two-legged knockout contests against English clubs.
#4
Man United finished top of Group F to advance to this stage, collecting 11 points from their six matches, with Cristiano Ronaldo coming up with some incredibly important goals to help send his team into the knockout round of the competition for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign. The Red Devils, who are two-time winners of the Champions League, beat Paris Saint-Germain at this stage of the 2018-19 competition, but they failed to make it through the group stage last term, ultimately dropping into the Europa League, reaching the final before losing to Villarreal.
#5
The Premier League giants have won seven of their previous 11 round-of-16 ties, while they are in the knockout round for the 19th time – an English record – but the club have not managed to make the final of the competition since 2011, and it will be fascinating to see what Ralf Rangnick can deliver this season.
DPP Verdict
Both teams would view a draw as a positive result ahead of the second leg at Old Trafford, and we are finding it difficult to separate them here. Man United are more than capable of finding the back of the net in Madrid, but Atletico will also expect to score at Wanda Metropolitano, so this contest could finish 1-1.
