Key events
Richard Hirst with a first-half hat-trick: “The goal may have been ruled out but Atletico are definitely Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.”
Kevin “Bloody” Wilson: “It does look to be going the same way it did for Amorim, Solskjaer, Mourinho – it’s not a question of if Carrick will lose his job, it’s when.”
Half-times in the Champions League
Earlier full-times
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Lens 0-2 Sporting
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Sabah 2-0 Slavia Prague
Half-time: Atletico Madrid 1-0 Manchester United
A goal down in 53 seconds, and then came an improvement, chances for Mbeumo and Rashford came and went. Then came gratitude for VAR. Atletico will be disappointed they are not 2-0 up.
45 min: Some relief for United. Heaven was involved in that, Simeone has clearly targeted the weakness down the United defensive flanks. They will be relieved to go in just 1-0 down.
Goal ruled out – still 1-0 to Atletico
44 min: Did the ball hit the hand of Llorente in that buildup? He gained an advantage, and the VAR decision goes against Atletico. United were very lucky. Bruno made himself useful by running to the ref to ask him to look at it.
Goal! Atletico Madrid 2-0 Manchester United (Cardoso, 44) – goal ruled out by VAR
Too easy, United back in numbers and still allow Atletico to pass the ball around, and seize on the loose ball, Cardoso rattling in from distance.
42 min: Baena and Grimaldo are quite the threat down the left, keeping Diogo Dalot busy. Baena almost pulls off a one-two with Alvarez but Dalot reads it and is able to stop that attack. Another will surely follow. And it does, with Alvarez firing over.
40 min: Bruno, at last, gets forward, off the right but is slow to get the ball in. Eventually, the ball goes back to Heaven, who is not the player United want to be attacking in the final third.
38 min: That talk of improvement in United? Well, that’s going flat. Atleti are stepping it up. United have lost their previous capability of holding possession.
37 min: A booking. Not for Andrey Santos for his tackle on Cardoso, but for Diego Simeone for waving a fake yellow. The great man has still got it.
36 min: United back in numbers, and holding their shape. If it wasn’t for that early calamity this might be classed as a mature European performance. But it’s a big if, isn’t it?
34 min: Leighton Taylor is a man and not a boy, presumably: “Has nobody acknowledged the incredible Chesney Hawkesalikery of the goal scorer? It’s amazing he is maintaining that level of volume in his hair so far into the game.”
33 min: Heaven called into action to stop Lee and then Llorente as Atletico try to pile forward in numbers. This time, United hold firm. Better from Heaven. United won’t want too much Heaven in action.
31 min: Richard Hirst has been back on: “Time to switch the spotlight away from the unfortunate Heaven? Given his predilection for kamikaze tackles and general mindlessness I’m surprised we haven’t heard more about a certain former Spurs central defender,: ‘wherefore art thou Rome(r)o?’”
He and Martinez were Argentina’s gruesome twosome at the summer’s World Cup.
30 min: Bruno, for it is he, lofts in a free-kick that does little to trouble Oblak. A waste, in fact. It gives chance for Barrios to go on the burst, and he wins a corner.
29 min: Some frustration for the home team and their fans, with United doing better in midfield. Bruno Fernandes still yet to see much of the ball, mind.
28 min: This has been better from United, they have responded well to going behind. Baleba leaves a reducer on Baena, and that might help them along. Baleba escapes a booking, too.
26 min: Close for Atleti. Martinez, on Barrios, makes one of his injudicious fouls and that sets up a chance for an Atletico free-kick. Grimaldo takes with his left, and swings it off the angle.
25 min: Baleba gets a good chance from the corner but the angle is tight and he cannot beat the goalkeeper.
24 min: Big chance for United. Baleba wins the ball, and then Mbeumo and Tielemans swap passes, the forward shoots, and Oblak has to make the save.
22 min: United continue to have more of the ball. But Atletico’s counters are the danger and Cardozo’s ball over the top is aimed for Alvarez who seems to give up the chase.
20 min: Buddy Holly Eddie Cochran fan Tim Wood gets in touch: “If United’s left back is struggling, the centre backs need to keep close to support him. Ideally ensuring there are never more than Three Steps to Heaven.”
Apologies, got my ill-fated, early rock n’roll heroes mixed up there.
19 min: The home team, with that lead, are playing patiently. And then going vertical, as they say, just when United are sitting back expecting a slow passing move. This is a different Atletico to that we have been used to over the Simeone years, all 15 of them.
17 min: Atletico go long towards Alvarez, and Yoro uses his pace to close down the danger. United’s three attempts against Atleti’s single shot, and yet the score is in the Madrid team’s favour.
15 min: United have improved. From a low bar, admittedly. It’s the defending that’s let them down. Baleba is fouled in his own box, having not spent too much time on the ball so far.
14 min: Bruno Fernandes is coming off the flanks, and is roaming. He’s yet to see much of the ball, it has to be said. Martinez drifts a ball over and Rashford just can’t get a connection.
12 min: And United go close. They should have scored, too. Mbeumo shoots, and it lools likely to head in, only for Oblak’s leg to get the slightest of touches. Atleti clear the resultant corner.
11 min: Llorente, with real strength, cuts off a Rashford run. United, at least, have mounted an attack.
10 min: Alvarez finds the time and space to take the ball down, and soon enough Baena has the ball in that inside left position. Over comes Santos whose role seems mostly to have become dropping back into that role.
9 min: Richard Hirst is in: “Heaven knows he’s miserable now.” So is Peter Oh: “A Heavenly deflection for Atleti and a hellish start for the Red Devils.”
Yes, yes, very good.
8 min: United yet to string more than two passes together? Certainly feels that’s the case.
7 min: Baena buzzes forward again, and Grimaldo underlaps him to get in a shot that is not much of a test for Lammens. Next, Santos runs back to cover the danger of that man Baena.
6 min: No Harry Maguire for United. For once, he was not on the crime scene, and so Yoro has been given his chance. It will have to improve from here. In the meantime, United yet to put much together.
4 min: Leaving Baena, a player who could hardly have been unknown to United, to run free like that was poor. Feels like United were trying to get into shape and then forgot they had to chase and press. What a player Baena is, by the way.
2 min: That goal came in 53 seconds. It was, frankly, a total mess for United, Baena allowed so much freedom, as was Barrios. Heaven could not get across in time.
Away we go in Madrid and it’s 1-0 Atletico (Barrios, 1)
1 min: Heaven is left-back, Tielemans will be No 10….but here goes Baena. He slots the ball across and Barrios shoots, the ball comes off Heaven, and Lammens is caught cold.
The minute of reflection for Koke’s mum is observed. This would have been his 750th appearance but he has been left out on compassionate grounds.
Back to now, and the teams are out, and the Champions League anthem is ringing out, and there’s a few jeers. City fans in? The music dies off and then there’s quite the atmosphere in the Metropolitano.
The teams met in 1991 in the old European Cup Winners’ Cup, here’s the teams from the second leg. Atleti won 4-1 on aggregate.
United: Gary Walsh, Paul Parker, Steve Bruce, Clayton Blackmore, Neil Webb, Ryan Giggs, Bryan Robson, Mike Phelan, Mark Robins, Brian McClair, Mark Hughes
Atlético: Abel Resino, Juanito, Solozábal, Tomás, Toni Muñoz Donato, Moya, Bernd Schuster, Vizcaíno, Futre, Manolo
When last they met. Ralf Rangnick, there’s a blast from the recent past, but a forgotten name already.
Peadar de Burca gets in touch: “This is one of those games, John, where you don’t tune it to see free-flowing joga bonita, dancing on the ceiling football, but because there’s a whiff in the air, a whiff of wounded sheep, the wolves are closing in and by cuss it’s hard to pull your eyes away. The beginning of the end for Carrick…?”
In August, in a friendly in Sweden, United and Atletico played a friendly, United winning 2-1. Who came on in the 82nd minute? None other than JJ Gabriel? Whatever happened to him?
Josh Keeling also has his theories: “I reckon it might be a diamond with Fernandes behind a front two. Or maybe Fernandes as a false nine. Let’s see.”
Whisper it, but Bruno has not been playing well this season. He did not complete a pass for a long time against Tottenham, and there’s been that hint from the international break that he’s been playing with an injury.
Sean McHale gets in touch: “Looks like Bruno at false nine, John. I think a good shout as they’ve been far too open in a de facto 4-4-2. And Tielemans not great in a two.”
Carrick said that we would have to “wait and see” when asked about Bruno, so that suggests Sean may be right there.
Diego Simeone made mention of Julian Alvarez in his pre-match duties: “Well, he’s happy because I’ve been able to speak to him a lot and I’ve really focussed on Julian Alvarez as the person, not just the player and I think we’ve reached reached a very good point with him.“
Michael Carrick speaks to the Amazon UK broadcast: “It’s where we want to be. Got a really good history of this competition and that’s where we want to challenge ourselves and test ourselves. you know, we’ve worked hard to be here. We want a reaction You know, we haven’t had the results that we wanted, that we expected. Fine margins in some of them games and it can go both ways, but the reality is exactly where we are now and this is a fresh opportunity.
“I think we want a get control without the ball and we want a lot more control with it whatever get. I think we’ve got a bit of flexibility. I think we need to defend as a whole team. But you have proved that we’re capable of doing that and we got to get back to that.”
For Atleti, Koke missing, as mentioned previously, but Julian Alvarez, who wanted to leave the club in the summer, is a starter. His last start was against Liverpool, so this is his first home start of the season.
That United team looks like Youri Tielemans is being pushed forward and Bruno Fernandes will be playing off the flanks. Marcus Rashford returns to the starting lineup. Baleba added some energy to United on Saturday against Tottenham though his shooting was a little wayward. Is that Dalot or Yoro at left-back? Would guess Yoro. Andrey Santos for the double pivot, too.
Teams: Baleba starts for United
Atlético Madrid: Oblak, Llorente, Romero, Hancko, Grimaldo, Simeone, Barrios, Cardoso, Alex Baena, Alvarez, Lee. Subs: Musso, Mendoza, Sorloth, Lookmnan, David, Ortiz, Pubill, Hjulmand, Le Normand, Lituba, Dani Martinez, Castillo.
Manchester United: Lammens, Dalot, Martinez, Heaven, Yoro, Santos, Baleba, Tielemans, B.Fernandes, Rashford, Mbeumo. Subs: Darlow, Mee, Amass, Armer, De Ligt, Maguire, Mount, T.Fletcher, Lacey, Amad, Cunha, Zirkzee.
Michael Carrick was not exactly bullish – he never is – but he remains publicly calm under pressure.
We hoped for a lot more, we expected a lot more, and we are where we are. I was aware that, winning as many as we had [last season], it was going to get more challenging, stickier. I understand that when it is not going well there is a real clamour and a feeling that it’s a disaster, that it’s all wrong and that everything needs to be changed. I kind of get that, but that’s not our mindset and it’s certainly not mine. You have to deal with things and overcome them. That is what I did throughout my career. We have to accept reality but we are building and you can’t lose sight of the journey.
It feels a long time since Manchester United played Sabah on their opening group-stage match.
There will be 3,750 United fans in the stands. They have not had much to cheer this season.
Atlético Madrid captain Koke will not play tonight after his mother died.
There will be a moment of silence before the game at the Metropolitano Stadium, and the home team’s players will wear black armbands. Koke’s brother, Borja Resurrección, is an assistant coach of Atletico’s under-19 squad. The club’s flag outside the Metropolitano is flying at half-mast
Preamble
With Manchester United and Michael Carrick careering towards the dumper, then travelling to face Diego Simeone’s Atleti is almost certainly not the fixture that would be handpicked. Though perhaps it can serve as some kind of turning point. Play as sluggishly as United have in their last two Premier League matches either side of the international break – Fulham and Tottenham – and there’s big trouble in store. Atlético have won their last four matches in La Liga, including a famous win in the Madrid derby. Their last Champions League match did, thouugh, see them lose at Anfield. If the competition’s bloated structure has its critics, and United can probably get away with losing in the scheme of reaching the knockouts, Carrick can barely afford to. Further to that, there may not be two more opposite touchline characters than Simeone and Carrick.
Kick-off is at 8pm UK time. Join me.
