Atletico Madrid vs Manchester United: Red Devils can topple Spanish champions

Cristiano Ronaldo and Ralf Rangnick embrace at Old Trafford

Ralf Rangnick’s side travel to Madrid on Wednesday looking to make it three wins in a row across all competitions.

Manchester United will take part in their first Champions League knockout tie since 2019 on Wednesday, when they take on reigning La Liga champions Atletico Madrid.

However, while Atletico enjoyed a superb season last year, Diego Simeone's side have struggled to reach similar heights in 2021/22, and currently find themselves fifth in the table.

United have faced criticism over recent performances, but their results have been far better under Ralf Rangnick, and they find themselves on a run of five games unbeaten. Despite playing away from home in the first leg, the Red Devils should be confident of getting a result on Wednesday evening.

When: Wednesday, February 23, 20:00 GMT

Where: Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid

How to watch: BT Sport

Follow the game via our live centre

Who is the referee for Atletico vs Man Utd?

Romanian referee Ovidiu Hategan will officiate the fixture on Wednesday night. Hategan has taken charge of three Manchester United games in his career, and the Red Devils have lost none of them.

A 1-1 draw against Celta Vigo in the semi-finals of the Europa League back in 2017, a 2-1 win over Juventus in the 2018 Champions League group stages, and their 4-1 triumph over Istanbul Basaksehir in last season's group stages were all officiated by Hategan.

But remarkably, Atletico will be equally pleased to see Hategan appointed for Wednesday's clash. In his four games in charge of them, they too have never lost.

This includes a 1-0 win over Rubin Kazan, a 2-1 win against Benfica, a 3-2 victory over Red Bull Salzburg last season, and a 0-0 draw against Porto at the start of this season's group stages. Perhaps a draw is on the cards.

Recent form

Manchester United players celebrate their win vs Leeds United

While much has been made of Rangnick's time at Manchester United so far, the German coach has only seen his side lose once in 90 minutes since his appointment.

Combined with good recent form which has seen United win successive games against Brighton and Leeds, they enter the clash as the in-form side.

United's only issue has been drawing too many winnable games, with stalemates against Southampton, Burnley and Aston Villa hindering their Premier League campaign in recent weeks.

As for Atletico Madrid, for a team usually focused on being organised and resolute, they've conceded far too many goals this season.

Their 34 goals conceded in La Liga ranks them as the seventh-worst defence in the league, and that will worry Diego Simeone, who often instructs his team to sit back and counter attack in cup matches.

In contrast, their 45 goals scored ranks third behind only Real Madrid and Real Betis. Perhaps Simeone may be forced to abandon his usual defensive tactics on Wednesday and go toe-to-toe with United.

Champions League journey so far

Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, Villarreal, Champions league

Atletico Madrid play at home in the first leg after finishing second in Group B behind Liverpool. Two defeats against the Reds made qualifying for the last 16 difficult, and a 1-0 loss to Milan in November made their final game against Porto a must-win clash.

A dramatic finale followed, with Atletico winning 3-1 thanks to goals from Antoine Griezmann, Angel Correa and Rodrigo De Paul. However, much of the attention was cast to the game's three red cards, with Yannick Carrasco being handed his marching orders on the 67th minute before Porto's Wendell and Agustin Marchesin followed closely behind.

As for United, a shock 2-1 loss to Young Boys in their opening game put them on the back foot, but two Ronaldo-inspired wins against Villarreal and Atalanta put them back in the mix for qualification.

Another brace from Ronaldo helped United rescue a point away to Atalanta, and a 2-0 win against Villarreal sealed their passage out of Group F.

Head-to-head record

The two sides have only faced each other twice in their history, across two legs of the 1991 European Cup Winners Cup.

Atletico raced to a 3-0 lead in the first leg, before a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford followed.

Managers' thoughts

Ahead of the match, Rangnick said "They are always an emotional side and this reflects the character of the manager. Diego Simeone is probably one of the best emotional managers in Europe.

"The style of the way his teams have always performed reflects those emotions that he brings to the team. We need to match the levels of energy and emotion in both games.

"It will be physical, it will be emotional and we will have to be mentally strong in both games."

Diego Simeone also spoke highly of Wednesday's opposition, "It's a good team with good footballers. They have huge talent in their starting 11.

"They have an incredible midfield. I am incredibly impressed with the work rate. Pogba and McTominay are two of the best midfielders in the world with a great balance. And we all know what Ronaldo and Bruno can do, it will be tough."

Atletico vs Man Utd predicted teams

While Manchester United seem to have a fully fit squad, Atletico are facing an injury crisis ahead of the first leg.

Captain Koke reportedly picked up an injury in their recent 3-0 win over Osasuna, while Matheus Cunha and Daniel Wass are also sidelined and Yannick Carrasco and Felipe are both suspended.

Predicted Atletico Madrid line-up: Oblak, Mandava, Gimenez, Savic, Vrsaljko, Lemar, Herrera, Kondogbia, De Paul, Correa, Felix

Predicted Man Utd line-up: De Gea, Dalot, Varane, Maguire, Shaw, McTominay, Pogba, Sancho, Fernandes, Rashford, Ronaldo

Atletico vs Man Utd prediction

With Manchester United slowly improving under the tutelage of Ralf Rangnick, this will be their toughest test yet, but a vulnerable Atletico side could be caught out by a star-studded attack.

Expect the Red Devils to push for a first leg lead here, with a narrow 2-1 win looking likely.