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#3 Jadon Sancho’s ever-improving form for Manchester United
Manchester United snapped up one of the most highly-rated young players in Europe, Jadon Sancho, for £73 million in the summer of 2021. Joining from Borussia Dortmund, the Englishman did not find it easy to settle into the new league. Following a few sub-par performances in the opening months, critics were quick to call him a failure.
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Luckily for the Red Devils, the 21-year-old did not take the harsh words to his heart and focused on improving himself instead. Over the last few weeks, we have seen the England international produce his Bundesliga form for Manchester United.
He assisted twice in a 2-4 win over Leeds United and scored in the FA Cup fourth-round win against Middlesbrough. Sancho also netted United’s only goal in the 4-1 defeat to Manchester City.
The former Dortmund star was also excellent in last Saturday’s win over Tottenham Hotspur, assisting Cristiano Ronaldo’s second goal of the evening.
The youngster is peaking at just the right moment for United and we won’t be surprised to see him play a starring role against Atletico.
#2 Atletico Madrid’s inconsistent domestic run
Spanish champions Atletico Madrid have had a hard time producing encouraging displays this season.
With Diego Simeone’s future up in the air, the club are seemingly going through a transition phase that has reflected on their on-pitch performances.
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Los Rojiblancos have lost seven games in the Spanish top-flight. They currently sit in fourth place, 15 points behind league leaders Real Madrid, and are practically out of the title race.
Yes, they have managed to win their last five La Liga fixtures, but they do not seem up for a grueling Champions League outing.
Unless they open the scoring and then opt for a low block, we don’t see how they can outperform a hungry Manchester United side on Tuesday night.
#1 The Cristiano Ronaldo factor
The leading scorer (140 goals) in Champions League history, Manchester United No.7 Cristiano Ronaldo, is raring to make headlines on Tuesday night. The 37-year-old comes into the match on the back of a blistering hat-trick against Spurs, and we won’t surprised to see him replicate that feat.
The Portuguese superstar has a long and illustrious history with Diego Simeone’s men. During his time at Real Madrid, he faced them 25 times in domestic competitions, scoring 18 goals and providing six assists.
He also beat them twice in the Champions League finals, once in the quarter-finals, and another time in the semi-finals. In the semi-finals of the 2016-17 campaign, he scored a decisive first-leg hat-trick to take the tie away from Atletico.
At Juventus, too, he locked horns with Atletico. In the 2018-19 season, Simeone’s men beat the Bianconeri 2-0 in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16. Ronaldo then produced a second-leg hat-trick to send Los Rojiblancos packing.
The Spanish champions are likely to pay special attention to Ronaldo on Tuesday night. Unfortunately, rarely have they been able to contain the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Old Trafford could very well stand witness to another memorable Cristiano Ronaldo masterclass on Tuesday night.
