UCL Stats Gallery: Manchester United vs Atalanta – xG, shot maps and more | OneFootball

Manchester United came back from behind to win a thrilling encounter by 3-2 at Old Trafford against Atalanta yesterday in the UEFA Champions League.

We’ve broken down all the key stats for you to digest, including;

* shot maps

* xT (expected threat)

* pass networks

* xG timelines

* defensive duels

* average positions and much more!

We also try to answer some questions for you with the visuals:

Where did United create the most xT? Who had the most xG in the match?

To navigate the stats gallery simply click on the numbers to move through the pages.

At the end of the gallery, you’ll be able to download the full PDF stats report.

Manchester United started in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Harry Maguire back in central defence replacing the injured Raphael Varane with Cristiano Ronaldo upfront.

The home side played with a relatively high defensive line with the centre-backs staying near the centre while the other players spent most of the time in the other half.

Atalanta lined up in their familiar 3-4-1-2 formation with the duo of Luis Muriel and Josep Ilicic leading the line supported by Mario Pasalic.

The away side played extremely deep in their own half with the majority of the players near the centre.

Man United had a total of 21 attempts with nine of them on target, scoring thrice with an xG of 2.35. Atalanta had 12 shots in all with five on target, scoring twice with an xG of 1.59. United dominated the possession while Atalanta had a higher ppda.

Cristiano Ronaldo had the most shots in the match(7) naturally yielding the highest xG among all with 0.70. Bruno Fernandes had the most final third passes with 13.

Mario Pasalic had the highest xG for the hosts.

The Red Devils took the maximum number of shots inside the box, scoring all of their goals from there. Keeping the majority of their shots on target, they did force the keeper into making a lot of saves during the match. They took shots from distance as well but most of them were off target.

The side from Bergamo had only a few shots inside the box, however, both times from there. They were not very clinical upfront failing to keep most of their shots on target and could not test the keeper as much as they would have wanted to.

xT timeline shows that Atalanta had a better start to the game among both sides, taking a 2-0 lead within the first 25 minutes. They started the second half on a high note as well but soon lost control of the match after United scored their first goal. They were unable to keep up with their relentless attacks and ended up losing 2-3.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka attempted the highest number of passes(80) and received the most with 61 as United dominated 56% of possession.

Atalanta had 44% of the ball with Joachim Maehle playing the most passes(53). Teun Koopmeiners received the most passes(40).

The home team played most of their passes near the flanks on either side of the midfield. They played a lot of smart passes but most of them were unsuccessful. Bruno Fernandes played the most crosses into the box(9).

The visitors played the majority of the passes on the left flank near midfield, attempting three smart passes, all of them being unsuccessful. Atalanta did not deliver a lot of crosses into the box with Zappacosta playing in the most with five.

Man United had the highest xT creation zones on the left-wing, right-wing and inside the penalty area on the right. Victor Lindelof was the best passer among the ranks with 98.31% accuracy.

Bruno Fernandes created nine big chances in the match and was the most threatening passer with an xT of 0.72. Ronaldo was the best dribbler with an xT of 0.113.

Atalanta had the most xT creation zones on the edge of the box on the right side, Josep Ilicic being the most efficient passer with 90% accuracy.

Davide Zappacost had the highest xT from passes with 0.49 while Duvan Zapata lead the charts for dribbles(0.115).

The Red Devils lost the majority of their defensive duels with Lindelof losing out the most on eight occasions. Maguire lost all of his duels while Bruno was unimpressive.

They improved extensively in terms of aerial duels with Harry Maguire winning the most duels(5). Scott McTominay won on four occasions while Ronaldo was impressive higher up the pitch.

Manchester United were really good in 50-50 ball recoveries. Luke Shaw won the most duels with three. Maguire again won all of his duels while Fred won two but lost three.

Atalanta lost most of their defensive duels. Palomino lost the most duels in the team with seven. Zappacosta and de Roon were both extremely poor.

They were no better in the air with Joachim Maehle losing out on three occasions. Pasalic lost the most with four while Muriel and Zapata lost all of their duels higher up the pitch.

The visitors did not engage in a lot of loose ball recoveries. Demiral and Palomino were impressive while Marten de Roon was poor losing all his duels.

A high-voltage match with goals, drama and comebacks, Manchester United vs Atalanta did not fail to impress. Atalanta had a really strong start to the match but later faded out with a dismal defensive performance. They would be really disappointed to not take away any points from the game after such a good start. United on the other hand, started poorly but later crawled back into the game to take away all three points. It would provide a real good boost to the morale of the team before they face Liverpool on Sunday.

If you want to download the stats in PDF format you can do so here: UCL Stats Analysis: Manchester United vs Atalanta