Man Utd change Aeroflot flight to Madrid for Champions League last-16 tie vs Atletico amid ongoing Ukraine-Russia tension

Manchester United cancelled their flight with Aeroflot to Spain for their Champions League last-16 tie against Atletico Madrid amid the ongoing political tension between Ukraine and Russia.

United are set to face Atletico in the first leg of the European knockout stage tie at Wanda Metropolitano on Wednesday night.

Ralf Rangnick and his squad were originally due to travel to Madrid with Russia airline Aeroflot but changed their plans at the last minute.

United have had a commercial partnership with Aeroflot since 2013 and have regularly used the charter airline to fly to European matches.

They were pencilled in for flight A359 to Madrid scheduled to depart at 4pm GMT (11am ET) on Tuesday, but cancelled and travelled with British airline Titan Airways instead.

It has been reported that the decision was made mutually with Aeroflot and United's relationship with the airline has not been affected.

Russian President Vladimir Putin moved troops into two rebel-held regions of Ukraine on Tuesday.

Putin declared Luhansk and Donetsk as independent states, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson subsequently announced a number of sanctions against Russia.

United opted against flying with a Russian airline due to the situation and UEFA is now under pressure to move the Champions League final from St Petersburg.

"It is clear from the response of the world to what he [Putin] has done already in Donbas that he is going to end up with a Russia that is poorer as a result of the sanctions that the world will implement," Johnson said in the House of Commons.

“A Russia that is more isolated, a Russia that has pariah status – no chance of holding football tournaments in a Russia that invades sovereign countries."

UEFA has issued its own