Krishnan Sreekumar
Atletico Madrid wary of Cristinao Ronaldo threat ahead of Manchester United clash in the Champions League
Speaking to Marca ahead of his side’s Champions League clash against Manchester United tomorrow (h/t Manchester Evening News), Atletico Madrid forward Angel Correa admitted that the La Liga champions are wary of Cristiano Ronaldo posing a threat to them.
United are up against Atletico in the first leg of the Round of 16 tomorrow night, playing at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid, giving the hosts a first-leg home advantage.
Correa said that it wasn’t just Ronaldo, but the whole United team that Atletico need to be serious about as he praised the opposition and gave them due respect ahead of the important tie.
“But you can’t just look at Cristiano; you have to look at the entire team. They’re a great side and we’re going to have to make a serious effort to beat them.”
Ronaldo is set to lead the line against the defending champions of Spain, as striker Edinson Cavani has been ruled out of the clash by interim Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick.
Lot of damage
Ronaldo is no stranger to Atletico, having faced them multiple times during his time with Real Madrid in La Liga. The Portugal international is sure to receive a hostile reception from the Atletico supporters tomorrow, but this is something the superstar will be used to by now and it would certainly not faze him.
Correa knows just how much of an enemy Ronaldo is for Atletico, admitting that he has done Atletico a lot of damage in previous encounters. The Portuguese superstar has 25 goals and 9 assists to his name in 35 games against Los Colchoneros.
“We know how Cristiano is. He’s already done a lot of damage to us in previous times that we faced each other.”
Ronaldo is sure to be public enemy number 1 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium, having broken Atletico fans’ hearts in previous encounters, both in La Liga and in the Champions League. Ronaldo was part of the Real Madrid team that defeated Diego Simeone’s side previously in two UCL finals, helping Los Blancos win their record 10th and 11th titles in the 2014 and 2016 finals respectively.
The Manchester United number 7 haunted the La Liga champions from Italy as well, as he scored a sensational hat-trick in the second leg of the Round of 16 when he was playing for Juventus in 2019. Atletico had taken a 2-0 lead in the first half of the tie, only for Ronaldo to put them to the sword single-handedly.
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United will hope that the 37-year-old can pull out the same tricks against Atletico once again tomorrow night, with expectations running high, given the forward’s previous history against the opponents. The first leg of the tie will be tough, considering we are playing away from home.
All eyes will be on Ronaldo tomorrow, as he takes to the field against familiar opponents once again. A first-leg victory is crucial, so we can settle the tie at home comfortably in the second leg and progress to the quarterfinals in the competition.
