Former striker Michael Owen is backing Manchester United to beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 in the second-leg of their Champions League last-16 showdown this evening.
United will welcome the Spanish heavyweights to Old Trafford looking to reach the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time since 2019. The first-leg finished 1-1 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium last month, meaning it is all to play for.
The Reds, who got back to winning ways in the Premier League on Saturday with a 3-2 victory over Tottenham Hotspur, secured a late equaliser in Spain, thanks to substitute Anthony Elanga. His cooly-taken finish cancelled out Joao Felix's early opener for the hosts.
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With Liverpool and Manchester City already in the hat for the last-eight, United will be desperate to join them, keeping their hopes of winning a trophy this season alive. And for former Reds striker Owen, he believes Ralf Rangnick's troops will get over the line, even if it is only a slender victory.
"That was a great result for Manchester away in Madrid," Owen told BetVictor. "We all know how patchy they've been domestically, but I think Europe comes as a welcome distraction.
"This isn't the Atletico of old when they had, arguably, the best defence in Europe, so I think United can get a result here."
United were second-best in the first-leg three weeks ago and will need to produce a much-improved showing if they are to get the job done and advance to the next phase of the competition. However, boss Rangnick believes the Reds' home advantage could make the difference this time around.
"It's 1-1, we play at home and we have to make sure that playing at home is an advantage for us," Rangnick told United's club website. "This is what Antonio Conte said after the game [on Saturday], it was a very difficult atmosphere.
"As I said, it's one of the biggest compliments that you can get if an opponent's coach speaks after the game of a difficult atmosphere for them, a special atmosphere. This is what we have to realise.
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"We have to bring our supporters behind us, even more so than they normally are anyway so we have to play in a way so that the fans can really carry us all through the game."
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