Atletico Madrid vs Manchester United : 5 key battles to watch | Champions League 2021-22 Round of 16 First Leg
Atletico Madrid will host Manchester United at the Wanda Metropolitano in the first leg of their Round of 16 tie on Wednesday night.
Atletico Madrid have a raft of injury concerns as they head into battle with Manchester United in the quest for a Champions League quarter-final berth. Diego Simeone's men are currently navigating one of their worst seasons in recent times.
Atletico Madrid and Manchester United have had similar seasons
The reigning La Liga champions are presently fifth in the league table and some of their key performers have let them down massively this season. Jan Oblak is chief among the underperforming players and Atletico Madrid have been uncharacteristically vulnerable in defence.
Meanwhile, Manchester United seem to have just about wriggled out of their worst phase of the season. The Red Devils are slowly steadying their ship under Ralf Rangnick but are still a long way away from winning games in a comfortable manner.
With so many superstars taking to the pitch as the two sides collide on Wednesday, the outcome could very well hinge on some individual battles. Without further ado, let's take a look at five key battles that could affect the result of tomorrow's Round of 16 game between Atletico Madrid and Manchester United.
#5 Marcus Rashford vs Reinildo
Atletico Madrid signed Mozambican defender Reinildo from Lille on transfer deadline day. He has since made four appearances for the Rojiblancos, with his most impressive performance coming in their 3-0 win over Osasuna this past weekend.
With Yannick Carrasco suspended and Thomas Lemar unlikely to feature, the 28-year-old is expected to play as the left wing-back on Wednesday.
Reinildo is a technically gifted footballer and this could be a real test for him as he will need to stop Marcus Rashford from making inroads into the area. Rashford has been nowhere near his best this season and was dropped from the lineup against Leeds United.
But he is likely to get the nod ahead of Anthony Elanga due to his experience in the knockout stages of the Champions League. Neither player is well settled at the moment and this could be a telling contest between the two.
Marcus Rashford - Get that head of yours up immediately ❤️ https://t.co/gV8mXduBJi
#4 Angel Correa vs Harry Maguire
Harry Maguire will walk onto the Wanda Metropolitano turf on the back of two impressive performances. The Manchester United captain has received plenty of stick this season, but he was formidable at the back against Brighton & Hove Albion and Leeds United.
Maguire scored United's first set-piece goal of the season at the weekend against Leeds, nodding home a Luke Shaw corner. The Englishman has, time and again, struggled against pacy attackers. He tends to get dragged out of position a lot, overcommits and leaves a lot of space behind him for attackers to run into.
Angel Correa has been one of Atletico Madrid's in-form players this term, scoring 12 goals and providing five assists in 34 appearances across all competitions. Maguire will do exceptionally well to keep Correa at bay tomorrow.
| Ángel Correa is now the Argentine player with the MOST goal contributions (15) in Europe’s top 5 leagues this season.
🚨📊| Ángel Correa is now the Argentine player with the MOST goal contributions (15) in Europe’s top 5 leagues this season.
Unreal. 🤯 https://t.co/pL62s3sAZl