Manchester United must bounce back when they welcome Atalanta to Old Trafford in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have managed to win just one of their last five games in all competitions and sit third in Group F – level with Young Boys on three points.
Marking his first United appearance in five months with a goal: @MarcusRashford 👊#MUFC | #MondayMotivation pic.twitter.com/Kyqp6Kqg5f— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 18, 2021
Marking his first United appearance in five months with a goal: @MarcusRashford 👊#MUFC | #MondayMotivation pic.twitter.com/Kyqp6Kqg5f
At the opposite end of the group, Atalanta are unbeaten and find themselves first in Group F – one point ahead of Man Utd.
The Red Devils head into Wednesday’s clash on the back of a 4-2 defeat at the hands of Leicester City on Saturday.
They have now failed to win any of their past three Premier League games and have only managed to win two of their previous seven in all competitions.
Man Utd kicked off their Champions League with a 2-1 defeat to Young Boys, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka receiving a first-half red card.
They bounced back on Matchday 2, however, coming from behind to beat Villarreal thanks to an Alex Telles wonder-goal and a 95th-minute winner from Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo has netted five goals in eight appearances across all competitions since returning to Old Trafford.
On the flip side, Atalanta come into this game on the back of a 4-1 thrashing of Empoli, with Josip Ilicic bagging a first-half brace.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s side racked up a whopping 22 shots on Sunday, picking up their fourth Serie A victory of the season in the process.
When you look at the bigger picture, Atlanta have lost just two of their ten encounters in all competitions this term.
They remain unbeaten in the Champions League, having drawn 2-2 with Villarreal and beaten Young Boys 1-0 on Matchday 2.
It is also worth pointing out that Atalanta have scored at least two goals in six of their ten matches this season.
Head-to-head: This is the very first meeting between Man Utd and Atalanta, meaning there are no previous results to assess for this clash.
Team news: Man Utd centre-back Raphael Varane will be out for a few weeks through injury, while Anthony Martial and Edinson Cavani are doubts.
As for Atalanta, injured quartet Robin Gosens, Matteo Pessina, Hans Hateboer and Berat Djimsiti are all unavailable for Wednesday’s clash.
Both these sides have been wildly unpredictable this season, meaning we could see plenty of goals on Wednesday.
Forebet predicts that Man Utd and Atalanta will dish up a high-scoring draw, with over 3.5 goals expected.