Atletico Madrid claimed their first points of the UEFA Champions League league phase with a 2-0 victory over 10-man Manchester United in a controversial encounter, extending their unbeaten head-to-head run against the English side to five matches.
Match Report
Pressure continues to mount on Michael Carrick at Manchester United, and his side made a disastrous start after seemingly failing to follow instructions to remain compact in the opening minutes. Just 53 seconds into the game, Atletico broke through United’s defence with a pass that found Alex Baena, who calmly squared the ball for Pablo Barrios to fire home the opener despite Ayden Heaven’s attempt to clear it off the line.
Atletico maintained their attacking pressure, but United nearly found an equaliser against the run of play when Bryan Mbeumo created space inside the box. However, Jan Oblak used his studs to divert the forward’s effort narrowly wide.
The two players faced off again midway through the first half after Mbeumo exchanged passes with Youri Tielemans before driving towards goal from the left. His attempt at the near post was kept out by Oblak, who subsequently denied Carlos Baleba from the resulting corner as the midfielder made his full debut.
Alejandro Grimaldo then demonstrated Atletico’s attacking threat by curling a free-kick against the junction of the post and crossbar. United received another reprieve just before half-time when Johnny Cardoso’s goal was disallowed following a pitchside review, with Marcos Llorente penalised for handball in the build-up.
Atletico resumed the second half with the same attacking intent and came close to doubling their advantage within 10 minutes of the restart. Barrios delivered an excellent ball over United’s defence, allowing former Manchester City forward Julian Alvarez to unleash a volley that struck the post with Senne Lammens beaten.
United responded almost immediately with a similar opportunity. Tielemans sent a pass behind Atletico’s defence during a counterattack, and with Oblak off his line, Bruno Fernandes attempted a chip that narrowly missed the target, much to the disappointment of the travelling United supporters.
Fernandes became increasingly influential as the game progressed and struck the crossbar with a cross-shot 20 minutes from the end. However, United’s hopes of mounting a comeback suffered a major setback moments later when Leny Yoro received a retrospective red card following a collision with Jonathan David. The defender was judged to have denied his opponent an obvious goalscoring opportunity, although the decision appeared harsh.
Atletico capitalised on their numerical advantage five minutes later to seal the victory. David’s initial attempt was parried into the path of Ademola Lookman, who made no mistake from close range, tapping the ball into an unguarded net.
With the outcome seemingly settled, Carrick withdrew Fernandes, seemingly mindful of Manchester United’s upcoming weekend encounter against fierce rivals Leeds United. The Red Devils will head into that fixture seeking their first away league victory of the season.
For Atletico Madrid, the result provided another reason for confidence, as they continued their impressive Champions League form. The Spanish side have now won 10 of their last 12 matches in the competition’s group stage and league phase.