David de Gea insists his main ambition is still to win the Champions League this season with Manchester United, despite their turbulent season so far.
United have been well off the pace in the Premier League and have already been knocked out of both the League Cup and FA Cup.
It means any hopes of winning silverware this season instead rely on success in the Champions League, something they can take a step towards tonight (Wednesday night).
United return to European action when they travel to face De Gea's former side Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their last 16 tie and it is set to be a special night for the Spanish shot-stopper.
De Gea joined United from Atletico back in 2011 but has never played at their new Wanda Metropolitano stadium since they moved there back in 2017.
“It will be different because like you say, they’ve moved stadium and, of course, many years have gone by since then and lots of things will have changed,” De Gea told Inside United.
“But, for sure, it will be a special occasion, going back to the club where I started out and where everything began. It will definitely be special.
“We know that the Atletico de Madrid supporters really get behind their team and so it will be a special game for everyone.
“I have got lots of friends over there at Atletico de Madrid and it will be nice to meet up with them again, but, after all, it’s also just another game. We all want to win, I want to win, and we’ll be going there focused on winning.”
United have only reached the quarter-finals of the tournament twice since De Gea joined the club 11 years ago, but he knows that getting to the next stage of the competition would still not be good enough.
He added: “Yes, of course there is [that aim]. That’s the objective. To win.
“The focus and aim is to not only win the tie but to also try and win the Champions League itself.
“We’ll be trying our best to do so, and approaching it with a real desire and conviction and we’ll be giving it a real go. It’s a really great competition.”
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