Manchester United eased to a 4-0 home win over Sabah FC on matchday one of the UEFA Champions League, but they face a far tougher test away to Atlético de Madrid on Tuesday.
Man Utd's poor Premier League form continued on Saturday, when they conceded an injury-time equaliser against 10-man Tottenham at Old Trafford.
Diego Simeone's Atleti, in contrast, are in good spirits after winning their last four La Liga matches including a 2-1 derby victory over Real Madrid C.F just before the international break.
Atlético de Madrid v Manchester United Tips Summary
Best Bet - Atlético de Madrid to win @ 17/20
Alternative Bet - Half-time correct score - 0-0 @ 11/4
Bet Builder - Under 3.5 goals, Atlético de Madrid to win & Jonathan David to score @ 21/4
Atlético de Madrid v Manchester United Prediction
Best Bet: Atlético de Madrid to win @ 17/20
United have won only one of their first six Premier League matches this season, so they travel to Madrid more in hope than expectation.
Michael Carrick's men made a winning start to their UEFA Champions League campaign, thrashing Sabah of Azerbaijan 4-0 at Old Trafford.
Since then, though, they have lost at home to Manchester City in the league and Brighton in the EFL Cup, before 1-1 draws against lowly Fulham and Tottenham.
United blew a great chance to kickstart their season on Saturday, when Dominic Solanke scored a late equaliser for 10-man Spurs.
Former Tottenham defender Cristian Romero's 87th-minute goal sealed Atleti's 2-1 weekend win at Alaves and they have beaten Osasuna 4-0 and Real Madrid 2-1 in their last two home fixtures.
Simeone's side reached the UEFA Champions League semi-finals last season, knocking out Tottenham and Barcelona before a tense 2-1 aggregate defeat to English champions Arsenal.
They gave Liverpool a good game on matchday one, losing 2-1 at Anfield after taking an early lead, and should be too strong for United.
Simeone's squad has plenty of attacking depth. Julian Alvarez, Alex Baena, Kang-In Lee and the fit-again Alexander Sorloth came off the bench at Alaves and the in-form hosts are well worth backing to turn up the heat on Carrick and his players.
Alternative Bet: Half-time correct score 0-0 @ 11/4
Atleti's recent league wins over Sociedad (3-0) and city rivals Real (2-1) were goalless at half-time and they may have to wait until the second half to break down United.
The Red Devils raced into a 3-0 half-time lead against minnows Sabah, but most of their matches this season have been slow-burning affairs.
Three of the four goals in September's 2-2 draw at Everton came in the final 10 minutes and their subsequent league matches against Man City, Fulham and Tottenham were all goalless at half-time.
Carrick cannot afford to suffer a humiliating defeat in Madrid, so he may take a safety-first approach and 0-0 looks a decent bet in the half-time correct-score market.
Atlético de Madrid v Manchester United Bet Builder Tip
Under 3.5 goals
Atlético de Madrid to win
Jonathan David to score
Pays 21/4
Under 3.5 goals was a winning bet in five of Atleti's last six matches, while Man Utd's last three Premier League games have produced only five goals.
The hosts are solid favourites to beat their under-pressure visitors - Atlético have won their last four matches in La Liga and competed well in a 2-1 defeat at Anfield on matchday one.
Rojiblancos striker Jonathan David scored in three of his last four appearances and has had seven shots on target in just 204 minutes of playing time in La Liga this season.
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Key Match Stats
Atlético de Madrid have won their last four matches in La Liga
Atleti were drawing at half-time in four of their six victories this season
Alex Grimaldo has opened the scoring in three of Atleti's last four games
Manchester United have won only two of their eight matches in all competitions this term
Both teams scored in five of United's last seven games
Man Utd have scored one first-half goal in their first six Premier League fixtures
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
