Man Utd scrape draw against Atletico Madrid courtesy of late Elanga strike

(Football news) Manchester United scored late against Atletico Madrid to somehow manage a 1-1 draw. Atletico Madrid scored very early on thanks to Joao Felix's diving header in the 7th minute. Manchester United were the inferior team throughout the 90 minutes with Cristiano Ronaldo getting no service whatsoever. United finally pounced upon a mistake by Reinildo which fell to substitute Anthony Elanga who equalised in the 80th minute.

The game as a whole was a scrap involving a lot of fouls and breaks in play from both the sides. The referee was reluctant to dish out cards at the beginning but slowly had to show them to warn the players. Atletico Madrid committed 19 fouls getting 4 yellow cards while Manchester United 16 fouls getting 5 yellow cards. Manchester United couldn't break down Atletico's 4 man midfield which was working very hard and playing very deep. On the rare occasions they did manage to break through, they were brought down by fouls. Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes had to drop very deep to get a touch of the ball and make things happen.

Manchester United players didn't put a single good cross into the box. There was a period of 20 seconds when United players put in 3 crosses in the box but all of them came when Ronaldo was the only player in the box and all of them were over hit. Atletico on the other hand controlled the game but were let down by an individual error. They didn't really look to attack and extend their lead which may have been a wrong decision especially knowing how weak the Manchester United defence is.

United will definitely be very happy with the result as they go to Old Trafford on level terms. Ralf Rangnick will have to create a system where Ronaldo some service with a few accurate crosses in the return leg. Diego Simeone 2 seasons ago won at Anfield in the UCL Round of 16 and will be hoping to do the same in 3 week's time. 

Also read: Hyderabad FC qualify for semifinals with win over Kerala

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