Atletico Madrid vs Manchester United Preview

Four straight La Liga wins on one side, four games without a victory on the other: that is the contrast Atlético Madrid and Manchester United bring to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Tuesday night. The league phase standings tell a different story, though. United sit fourth after a 4-0 opening win over Sabah, while Atlético are 26th and without a point following a 2-1 defeat at Liverpool on matchday one. Los Colchoneros come into this one off a 2-1 win at Alaves on Saturday. The Red Devils were held 1-1 at home by Tottenham on the same day. With United three points better off and Atlético yet to get off the mark, the pressure is on the home side to turn domestic form into a European result. Kick-off in Madrid is at 8pm UK time.

Atlético’s most recent outing was a 2-1 win away at Alaves in La Liga on Saturday. It was their fourth straight league victory, in a run that reads W4 L1 across all competitions. Before Alaves, they beat Real Madrid 2-1 at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on 20 September. That derby win sits alongside two more comfortable results: a 4-0 home win over Osasuna on 16 September, and a 3-0 victory away at Real Sociedad three days before that. Those four league games produced 11 goals scored and just two conceded, and the side has 12 goals in total across the five. The one defeat in the sample is also the oldest result, a 2-1 loss at Liverpool in the Champions League on 9 September. That’s why Atlético still have ground to make up in Europe despite the domestic run.

Manchester United have one win, two draws and two defeats from their last five, and that solitary victory is the oldest result in the sample. Most recently, they were held 1-1 by Tottenham at home in the Premier League on Saturday. That was their second draw in a row, the other being a 1-1 at Fulham on 20 September. Ahead of that pair came two defeats within three days. Brighton won 3-2 in Manchester in the EFL Cup on 16 September to go through to the next round, and Manchester City won 1-0 at the same ground in the league on 13 September. Earlier in this run came the 4-0 home win over Sabah Baku in the Champions League on 10 September, the result that has the Red Devils fourth in the standings. Four of the five games were at home, where United won one, drew one and lost two. Across the four-game winless spell, they have scored four and conceded six.

Atlético hold the edge across the four meetings in the record, with two wins to United’s one and a single draw. The most recent was a 2-1 United win in a friendly on 1 August this year, with United listed at home. Before that, Atlético won 1-0 in another friendly on 30 July 2022, again with United as the home side. The competitive picture favours Los Colchoneros, who are unbeaten in the two Champions League meetings, both from 2022. The first leg at the Metropolitano finished 1-1, and Atlético won the return 1-0 in Manchester to go through. In this sample, United have yet to beat Atlético in a competitive match.

Manchester United are fourth in the league phase standings on three points, while Atlético sit 26th on zero. A win would lift Atlético to three points, though where that leaves them depends on results elsewhere on matchday two.

In Spain, the match is live on Movistar Liga de Campeones, with streaming on Movistar+. UK viewers can stream it on Amazon Prime Video, with radio commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live. In the USA, it’s on TUDN USA and UniMás, with Paramount+ and ViX streaming.

Possible Lineups

Atletico Madrid — Form

Manchester United — Form

Head to Head

Where to Watch

Table

Champions League Standings