Manchester United once again he showed his bad streak, a situation that took advantage of the Atletico Madridwho kept alive the flame of hope of winning a trophy in this campaign.
The last door to a coronation closed on Old Trafford, the stage where disappointments so often now occur. Atlético edged out Man United on Tuesday and knocked them out of the Champions League in the round of 16.
In a tight and tense game, Red Devils defender Diogo Dalot left Renan Lodi unmarked at the far post. The Brazilian finished off Antoine Griezmann’s cross to make the difference in the 41st minute.
“A few months ago I wasn’t playing, but everything has changed now and I’m very happy with that,” said Lodi, a 23-year-old left-back. “My role is difficult but I am learning it.”
Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t shine in the same way as he did on Saturday, with a hat-trick against Tottenham, now it was the turn of defender Raphael Varane, who tested Jan Oblak with a second-half header.
United were unable to beat the goalkeeper of the reigning Spanish La Liga champions, three weeks after a 1-1 draw in Madrid, which was of little use, given that away goals no longer have additional value as a criterion for scoring. tie-breaker.
“Continuing in this competition in which we really want to go far is something incredible, especially for our people,” said the midfielder of the Colchonero team, Jorge “Koke” Resurrection.
This leaves Man U with just two Champions League quarter-final appearances in a decade (2014 and 19).
Manchester United drags a drought of titles
Not since the 1970s had the Red Devils won a trophy in so long. The 2017 Europa League represented the ultimate honor for the most successful club in English football history.
There isn’t much to brag about in exchange for spending $1bn on transfers since Alex Ferguson, the two-time Champions League-winning manager, retired in 2013.
the archer David De Geaemerged from Atlético de Madrid, has remained with United since the Ferguson era.
“Obviously we haven’t been good enough,” he acknowledged. “It’s hard for the club, for us and for the fans. This is where we are at the moment. It’s a difficult situation, but we have to keep fighting.”
Cristiano left Old Trafford prior to retirement Ferguson and the beginning of the drought. The 37-year-old Portuguese star returned for this campaign, after triumphing with the Real Madrid and the Juventus. He became the man who restored the luster to United, but he did not take a single shot on goal against the Spanish club.
The instability at United is such that it has been a interim technician, Ralph Rangnick, who has directed it in the eliminations of the FA Cup and the Champions at the dawn of this 2022.
Ralf Rangnick gave #MUTV his thoughts following tonight’s game 💬#MUFC | #UCL
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) March 15, 2022
Now the priority is just to regain fourth place in the English Premier League to return to the Champions League next season. It will be necessary to see who is the technician for then.
Diego Simeone, twice runner-up in the Champions League, has led Atleti to the quarterfinals, just as he did in 2020.
“I feel happiness. There are a lot of people here working to make things go well and a lot of people involved to get out of the irregularity of the last month and a half”, said the Argentine strategist, whose team is fourth in La Liga, 15 points behind the leader Real Madrid. “But above all, because of the team’s reaction. When the team works as a team, it excites me”.
(With AP information)
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