Action for Europe premier club competition UEFA Champions League return with matchday two clash between in-form La Liga side Atletico Madrid and Premier League strugglers Manchester United. The game go happen for Estadio Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain, on Tuesday, October 13, at 9pm local time, 19:00 GMT. Al Jazeera Sport go bring all build-up and live updates from 16:00 GMT.
There are contrasting moods in camps ahead Tuesday fixture for Spanish capital. Atletico dey challenge Barcelona for top spot for Spain top flight, while Man United dey bottom half of England Premier League, several places below all their traditional rivals.
Left winger Alex Baena and striker Jonathan David don dey run show for Atletico, while playmaker Bruno Fernandes and marksman Bryan Mbeumo dey try keep United hopes alive of turning things around. Atletico and Man United set to clash for only fifth time in history and third in Champions League.
Atletico Madrid don make promising start to 2026-27 La Liga season, as dem sit second place, five points adrift of leaders and title holders Barcelona. Of eight league games dem play, Atletico win six, draw one and lose one. One of those results na feisty 2-1 derby win over giants Real Madrid.
Manchester United dey experience one of their worst starts to league campaign. Dem dey 12th for Premier League standings with six points, having won only one of six matches (D3 L2). Those defeats also include controversial 1-0 loss to bitter rivals Manchester City.
Atletico suffer 2-1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in their first UCL match of season, while Man United thrash Azerbaijani club Sabah 4-0 in their campaign opener. That keep Atletico 25th and Man United fourth in league phase of this year Champions League. Top eight teams at end of league phase qualify directly to knockout rounds.
Opta supercomputer give Atletico 48.5 percent probability of victory, while Man United get 27.2 percent chance and draw estimated at 24.3 percent likelihood.
Encounters: Last five matches across all competitions, latest match first. Atletico Madrid: W-W-W-W-L. Manchester United: D-D-L-L-W.
Alex Baena and Jonathan David for Atletico: Baena dey good form for club and country, with four goals and two assists for Atletico this season. Further up pitch, centre-forward David get three goals and two assists. Bruno Fernandes and Bryan Mbeumo for Man United: Midfielder Fernandes, United captain, don be team top scorer with four goals in all competitions, while playmaker also get one assist. Forward Mbeumo, meanwhile, get three goals and one assist.
Diego Simeone on Julian Alvarez failing to find net so far this season: ‘I think strikers with Julian characteristics always need goals, not just him. It true say beyond his finishing, he na team player, player wey can link very well, he can assist and he get many more tools than just goalscoring.’ On facing Man United: ‘The game go long, e go tough and we get to manage our efforts to compete well.’
Michael Carrick on United poor form: ‘We get to stay positive and keep doing the right things. We need do better and we need more points, of course we do.’ On facing Atletico: ‘We get big games coming up and are looking forward to Tuesday now. A fresh start, a fresh game and we go there looking forward to the game.’
Atletico get fully fit squad. Predicted starting XI: Jan Oblak; Marc Pubill, Cristian Romero, David Hancko; Marcos Llorente, Pablo Barrios, Koke, Giuliano Simeone; Kang-in Lee, Alex Baena; Julian Alvarez. As many as five United players out with injuries. Those include Patrick Dorgu (hamstring), Benjamin Sesko (shin), Tom Heaton (abdomen), Manuel Ugarte (knee) and Matthijs de Ligt (back).
