For Manchester United, the second leg in the Champions League round of 16 against Atletico is on Tuesday. No easy task, as Ralf Rangnick knows. But the coach also knows an improved Jadon Sancho in his ranks alongside Cristiano Ronaldo.
The dress rehearsal of the Red Devils before the Champions League duel with the Spaniards (1:1 in the first leg) was successful. In their own stadium they won 3:2 against Tottenham. Man of the match was clearly Cristiano Ronaldo, who once again proved his extra class with three goals. They will be hoping for a similar performance from CR7 at Old Trafford on Tuesday night (9pm).
“His performance was good, if not very good, and we hope to see the same from him against Atletico,” Rangnick said at Monday’s press conference. “But it’s not just Cristiano, it’s about the whole team. We saw in the first half in Madrid how we shouldn’t play and what we shouldn’t do. That is now our issue before the game on Tuesday. “
Ronaldo has often hurt Atletico
ManUnited have a real Atletico expert in their ranks in Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese has really hurt the Rojiblancos a time or two. In recent years, Atleti have lost five times to teams with CR7. Four times against Real (twice in the final, once in the semi-final, once in the quarter-final) and once against Juventus (in the last 16) – and each time the five-time world footballer did not play a supporting role.
Rangnick’s praise for Sancho
And if things don’t go so well for the star, there are still talented players in the Red Devils’ attack such as Jadon Sancho, who is coming in better and better after his move from Dortmund in the summer. “They paid quite a lot for him to get him from Dortmund . And when you pay that much in transfer fee for a player, the expectation that he also performs at that level is high. He told me that it was a problem for him to adapt to the intensity and physical play in this league,” said Rangnick, who then praised: “Now he has done that. I’m happy to see him playing at this level now. “
United expect more possession
The level Rangnick also wants to see from him on Tuesday when they take on an uncomfortable Madrid side. “They don’t care if the opponent has the ball. They had less than 50 per cent possession in their last league games, we are prepared for that,” the Red Devils coach assured. “It would be important to score the first goal and not fall behind. “
