City in Asia: Our previous Atleti clashes | OneFootball

City and Atleti had never met competitively until the 2021/22 season.

The two sides had avoided each other until being paired for a Champions League quarter-final over two legs.

It was 5 April when Diego Simeone brought his disciplined outfit the Etihad, looking to take a positive result back to the Spanish capital.

In a war of attrition, the Blues largely dominated but it wasn’t until the 70th-minute that Kevin De Bruyne broke the deadlock, latching on to Phil Foden’s delightful threaded pass before placing a low angled shot past the keeper with what would be the only goal of the game.

Atleti felt they were very much in the tie and confident they could overturn a 1-0 deficit at the Estadio Metropolitano, but they would take on a very different Manchester City – one prepared to dig in and scrap in what was an intense physical battle.

There had been five bookings in the first leg  shared between the teams – there was eight in the second leg, including a red card for Felipe in an ill-tempered end to the game.

But City stood firm, held Atleti 0-0 and won a semi-final berth with Atleti’s bitter rivals Real Madrid.

A combined 117,000 fans watched the game in Manchester and Madrid, with the Blues’ stoic display leading many to think Pep Guardiola’s side had all the attributes to become champions for the first time – but it wasn’t to be and City would have to wait another year to be crowned champions of Europe.

The only other meeting of the modern era came just over 15 months later during our 2023 Asian tour.

WATCH OUR PRE-SEASON MATCHES ON CITY+

This time, Atleti took the honours, beating the Blues 2-1 in Seoul with goals from Memphis Depay and Yannick Carrasco rendering Ruben Dias’ late goal little more than a consolation.

The match was watched by 64,165 fans in the Seoul World Cup Stadium – the same venue the two clubs will meet for a fourth time on 9 August – our final game before the new campaign starts with the FA Community Shield clash against Arsenal at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff a week later.

Watch our 2026 tour games on CITY+!

Subscribe to CITY+ now to see all three of City’s games during our 2026 pre-season tour of Asia.

We start in Hong Kong against Italian champions Inter on Saturday 1 August, with kick-off at 12:30 (UK).

After that, we go to Seoul to play a K League All-Stars side on Wednesday 5 August and then Atletico Madrid on Sunday 9 August.

All three will be available to watch on mancity.com and our official app for current CITY+ subscribers in supported locations*.

Available for £34.99 for an annual subscription or £4.99 per month, CITY+ gets you closer to the Club than ever before, with documentaries, live games and full-match replays throughout the season.

*Exact regions and territories to be confirmed.

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