So the trophy drought is extended to at least six years.
At this rate, Manchester City fans will erect at banner at the Etihad, marking the number of years since their local rivals last lifted silverware. United had such a banner at the Stretford End for 35 years, mocking City's lack of success, but now it is their turn to suffer such indignity.
In truth, even had United progressed to the last eight, there was little chance of them going all the way and being crowned champions of Europe, such are their glaring limitations. Those shortcomings ultimately led to their meek exit here, United lacking the quality and tactical nous to find a way past the well-drilled Spanish champions, who deserved to go through.
As soon as Diego Simeone's streetwise side took the lead just before the end of the first-half, it was always going to be a hard ask for United to find a way back into the tie. Twice finalists under Simeone, Atletico's game management was far superior to United's and they exposed the limitations of interim boss Ralf Rangnick's side and the scale of the job facing the new permanent manager this summer.
Yet United began the game brightly and came close to taking the lead in the 12 th minute, a fluid move involving Diogo Dalot, Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes ending with Anthony Elanga's shot from point-blank range blocked by the face of Atletico keeper Jan Oblak. Three minutes later and it was the turn of the visitors, Rodrigo De Paul unleashing a goal-bound shot from 25 yards which was kept out by an equally majestic save at full-stretch from David De Gea.
Atletico had the ball in the United net just after the half-hour mark, after a superbly-worked move involving skipper Koke and Marcos Llorente, whose cross was turned in by Joao Felix. But the goal was correctly ruled out for offside against wing-back Llorente. The visitors duly went ahead four minutes before the break, the goal coming against a backdrop of controversy, with United furious they were not awarded a foul at the other end for a challenge on Anthony Elanga.
Ref Slavko Vincic had his whistle to his mouth and seemed ready to blow for a foul, but waved play on, with Atletico scoring moments later, Antoine Griezmann crossing for the unmarked Renan Lodi, who wrong-footed De Gea with his far post header. United's players harangued the ref for his failure to blow for a foul on Elanga, but the brutal truth is the 19-year-old needed to be stronger when challenged, rather than going to ground and hoping for the decision to go his way, while shoddy defending at the other end gifted Atletico the opener.
Elanga nearly levelled within 30 seconds of the restart, scampering on to a clever flick from Fernandes, but dragged his shot just wide of Oblak's far post. Jadon Sancgo blazed a volley over the bar just before the hour, as Atletico withstood everything United threw their way.
Simeone's side went through their full repertoire of dark arts – time-wasting, over-reacting to fouls and general irritancy, all designed to run down the clock, disrupt United's rhythm and ultimately see them through to the next round. With 25 minutes left, Rangnick made a triple substitution, bringing on Rashford, Matic and Pogba, to try to gain some semblance of control and plunder the goal they needed, a task which proved beyond them.
