Atletico Madrid go to Old Trafford tomorrow evening to take on Manchester United in a finely-poised Champions League tie. The first leg of their last 16 clash was drawn back at the Wanda Metropolitano a fortnight ago so everything’s to play for.
And both sides are coming into the game off the back of a successful weekend. On Friday evening Atletico beat Cadiz 2-1 thanks to goals from Joao Felix and Rodrigo de Paul, and then the following night United beat Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 thanks to a dramatic hat-trick from the one-and-only Cristiano Ronaldo.
Neither side are enjoying stellar campaigns but they’ll hope the weekend’s exploits can inspire them to a strong performance come the first whistle. Atletico, despite their status as reigning champions, are currently fourth in La Liga while United are fifth in the Premier League, outside the Champions League places.
“Tomorrow is crucial,” United left-back Alex Telles said pre-match in comments carried by Mundo Deportivo. “It’s very important for this run we’re on in the Champions League. Whenever we play this competition we always dream of going as far as possible. We want to win, to be among the final eight. We need to play well tomorrow and we’re ready for that.”
Telles also touched on the important of Cristiano to the team, a player Atletico know well due his years on the other side of the Spanish capital with Real Madrid. “It’s important to have Ronaldo at the highest level,” Telles said. “When he’s like this, on fire, he’s incredible. The important thing tomorrow is to have a good game. If we play well we’ll have the fans on our side. Our fans are incredible and we notice it a lot on the pitch. We’re ready.”
