Cristiano Ronaldo vs Diego Simeone: Complete head-to-head record
By Sean Walsh
After duelling for over a decade now, the competitive rivalry between Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone and Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is one of football's greatest.
There remains a mutual respect between the pair, with the Argentine coach labelling Ronaldo as one of the world's finest players on several occasions - and insisting Atletico would have won the Champions League at least three times if not for the forward.
Here's a quick rundown of every meeting between Ronaldo and Simeone as well as their complete head-to-head record.
1. Atletico Madrid 1-4 Real Madrid - 11/4/12 (La Liga)
In their first ever meeting, Ronaldo scored a hat-trick to put Simeone's Atletico to the sword.
The Argentine had only been in the job for four months ahead of this clash, and would end his debut season as Atleti head coach with a Europa League title.
2. Real Madrid 2-0 Atletico Madrid - 1/12/12 (La Liga)
Ronaldo was again on the scoresheet in his second time up against Simeone as Real ran out 2-0 winners at the Santiago Bernabeu.
He would miss the return fixture later in the season, with Real prevailing 2-1 at the Vicente Calderon in his absence.
3. Real Madrid 1-2 Atletico Madrid - 17/5/13 (Copa del Rey)
One of the most famous games in the recent history of Spanish football, Ronaldo scored the opening goal of the 2013 Copa del Rey final before being sent off as Atletico won the cup after extra time at the home of their most bitter rivals.
4. Real Madrid 0-1 Atletico Madrid - 28/9/13 (La Liga)
Months after that Copa triumph, Atletico returned to the Bernabeu and picked up an important 1-0 win that would go some way to helping them win the 2013/14 La Liga title. Diego Costa scored the only goal that day.
5. Real Madrid 3-0 Atletico Madrid - 5/2/14 (Copa del Rey)
Real Madrid went some way to avenging those Copa and La Liga defeats with a 3-0 thrashing of their rivals in the first leg of their semi-final. Ronaldo played an important role though was not on the scoresheet that night.
6. Atletico Madrid 0-2 Real Madrid - 11/2/14 (Copa del Rey)
But Ronaldo did manage to grab a brace from the penalty spot in the return leg to seal their place in the final, going on to beat Barcelona at the Mestalla.
7. Atletico Madrid 2-2 Real Madrid - 2/3/14 (La Liga)
The two sides played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in their third meeting in a month, with Ronaldo grabbing a late equaliser for Los Blancos.
8. Real Madrid 4-1 Atletico Madrid - 24/5/14 (Champions League)
Atletico missed the chance to win their first ever Champions League thanks to the late rally of Ronaldo and his Real teammates.
Diego Godin's header saw Los Rojiblancos lead for much of the final, but Sergio Ramos levelled deep into injury time. Goals from Gareth Bale, Marcelo and Ronaldo saw Real claim 'La Decima'.
9. Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid - 19/8/14 (Supercopa de Espana)
The opening game of both sides' 2014/15 campaigns ended in a frantic 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Supercopa de Espana.
James Rodriguez gave the hosts a late lead on his debut, but Raul Garcia levelled the scoring minutes after.
10. Atletico Madrid 1-0 Real Madrid - 22/8/14 (Supercopa de Espana)
Ronaldo's future Juventus teammate Mario Mandzukic scored the sole goal in the second leg later that week, with Atletico scooping the first trophy of the season.
11. Real Madrid 1-2 Atletico Madrid - 13/9/14 (La Liga)
Atletico's early-season triumphs over Real continued with a 2-1 victory at the Bernabeu in La Liga weeks after their Supercopa win.
Ronaldo's penalty canceled out Tiago's opener, but Arda Turan's effort 15 minutes from time gave Atleti all three points.
12. Atletico Madrid 2-0 Real Madrid - 7/1/15 (Copa del Rey)
Goals from Raul Garcia and Jose Maria Gimenez gave Atletico control of their Copa del Rey last 16 tie...
13. Real Madrid 2-2 Atletico Madrid - 15/1/15 (Copa del Rey)
And Ronaldo's strike in the second leg counted for very little as a brace from the returning Fernando Torres helped Simeone's side into the next round.
14. Atletico Madrid 4-0 Real Madrid - 7/2/15 (La Liga)
Ronaldo's heaviest defeat to Simeone came a month later when Real and Atleti reconvened in La Liga.
Tiago, Saul, Antoine Griezmann and Mandzukic all managed to get on the scoresheet on a memorable afternoon at the Vicente Calderon.
15. Atletico Madrid 0-0 Real Madrid - 14/4/15 (Champions League)
The spoils were shared between these two rivals in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
16. Real Madrid 1-0 Atletico Madrid - 22/4/15 (Champions League)
And a very late strike from Javier Hernandez proved to be the tie's only goal in the eighth and final meeting between Real and Atletico in the 2014/15 season.
17. Atletico Madrid 1-1 Real Madrid - 4/10/15 (La Liga)
Rafa Benitez's Real Madrid were denied a win at the Vicente Calderon by a late goal from Luciano Vietto.
Karim Benzema had given Los Blancos a first-half lead before Griezmann missed from the penalty spot.
18. Real Madrid 0-1 Atletico Madrid - 27/2/16 (La Liga)
However, Griezmann's goal in the return fixture at the Bernabeu was the only one between the sides as Atletico effectively ended Real's title hopes.
19. Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid (AET, 5-3 on penalties) - 28/5/16 (Champions League)
Real got their revenge in a repeat of the 2014 Champions League final with a penalty shootout win at San Siro.
Ramos put Zinedine Zidane's men ahead, and Griezmann missed another penalty in this fixture just after the half-time break.
Yannick Carrasco scored a late equaliser in normal time and the match ended up going to penalties, with Ronaldo's spot kick proving to be the winner.
20. Atletico Madrid 0-3 Real Madrid - 19/11/16 (La Liga)
Ronaldo's hat-trick helped Real ease past Atletico in the first half of Real's La Liga-winning campaign.
21. Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid - 8/4/17 (La Liga)
A Griezmann strike five minutes from time earned Atletico a point later that season, though it counted for very little in the grand scheme of things - Real walked to the title and Atleti were marooned in third.
22. Real Madrid 3-0 Atletico Madrid - 2/5/17 (Champions League)
It was all about Ronaldo as Real and Atletico met in the Champions League for a fourth successive season.
The Portugal superstar bagged an impressive treble as the holders took a giant leap towards becoming the first side to retain the trophy in its current format.
23. Atletico Madrid 2-1 Real Madrid - 10/5/17 (Champions League)
Atletico did give their city rivals quite the scare a week later, with early goals from Saul and Griezmann dragging them back into the contest.
But Isco's strike on the verge of half-time effectively killed the tie thanks to the away goal rule. Still, at least Atletico won the last ever derby at the Calderon.
24. Atletico Madrid 0-0 Real Madrid - 18/11/17 (La Liga)
Nearly a year to the day after Ronaldo ran rampant at the Calderon, there were no goals scored in the first derby at the Wanda Metropolitano.
25. Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid - 8/4/18 (La Liga)
Ronaldo was on the scoresheet in his last Madrid derby, though his second-half strike was quickly followed by an equaliser from Griezmann.
26. Atletico Madrid 2-0 Juventus - 20/2/19 - Champions League
But you just can't keep Simeone and Ronaldo apart, can you?
In Ronaldo's first season at Juventus, he was drawn to face Atletico in the last 16 of the Champions League.
Late goals from Gimenez and Godin gave Los Rojiblancos control of the tie...
27. Juventus 3-0 Atletico Madrid - 12/3/19 (Champions League)
But Ronaldo almost singlehandedly wrestled it back with a hat-trick at the Allianz Stadium to turn the tie on its head and dump Atletico out of the Champions League for a fifth time.
28. Atletico Madrid 2-2 Juventus - 18/9/19 (Champions League)
Atletico and Juventus were drawn together in the Champions League group stage the following season - because of course they were.
Blaise Matuidi and Juan Cuadrado had Juve on their way to a win on matchday one, but Atleti's late rally saw Stefan Savic and Hector Herrera earn them a point.
29. Juventus 1-0 Atletico Madrid - 26/11/19 (Champions League)
Juventus secured top spot in the group with a narrow 1-0 win later in the group stage.
Paulo Dybala scored the only goal of the game in Turin.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Diego Simeone: Complete head-to-head record
The two have met a staggering 29 times in their careers, with Ronaldo winning 11 matches to Simeone's nine and nine draws between them.
Ronaldo will face Simeone's Atletico for the first time as a Manchester United player in the last 16 of the 2021/22 Champions League.