Cristiano Ronaldo: Man Utd star showed 'elite mentality' at half-time v Atletico

On Wednesday evening, Cristiano Ronaldo makes his triumphant return to Madrid.

In the city where he became a bona fide footballing legend, the Manchester United icon will do battle with Atletico, one of his favourite opponents.

At Real Madrid, Ronaldo was a constant thorn in Diego Simeone’s side – particularly in the Champions League.

The 37-year-old scored the decisive penalty in the 2016 final shootout contested between the two sides and he then scored a hat-trick in a semi-final first leg at the Bernabeu a year later.

That was the first of two trebles for Ronaldo against Atletico in the Champions League, the second coming just short of two years later when he was wearing Juventus colours.

After the Bianconeri suffered a 2-0 defeat at the Wanda Metropolitano in the first leg of the last-16 tie, Ronaldo took matter into his own hands by completing a solo revenge mission in Turin.

He put Juventus 1-0 up at the half-time break with a trademark header and during the interval, Ronaldo clearly realised the team were on the brink of something special.

So in the tunnel, the serial winner decided to go into ‘elite mentality mode’ in order to help prepare his colleagues for battle in the second half.

Check out the brilliant footage captured from inside the tunnel at the Allianz Stadium that memorable Champions League evening here…

Look at that. Look at the mentality. Look at the confidence and leadership. THAT is what makes a difference. The ability to inspire others. Bravo @Cristiano pic.twitter.com/WNWT5qdFKn

As soon as Ronaldo emerged, he did his very best to motivate his teammates, including club captain Giorgio Chiellini – a man famed for being a leader himself.

And after his inspirational actions in the tunnel, the