Arsenal vs Atletico Madrid Preview: Semi-Final Showdown at the Emirates
- Billy Stack
- May 5
- 3 min read
Arsenal will attempt to reach their first Champions League final in 20 years when they host Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night.
The semi-final is poised at 1-1 after the first leg, as both teams scored penalties in a caged game at the Metropolitano Stadium.
The Gunners are having to balance their European commitments with a Premier League title race, while Ateltico have been able to focus entirely on the Champions League.
Form Guide
The hosts head into Tuesday’s game off the back of a comfortable 3-0 victory over London rivals Fulham on Saturday.
Back-to-back home wins in the league have strengthened Arsenal’s grip on the Premier League title race, especially after title rivals Manchester City dropped points away at Everton on Monday night.
The Gunners are also unbeaten at home in the Champions League this season, having won all four of their league phase games, including against Atletico in October, and at home to Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16.
Their opponents also won on Saturday, a 2-0 victory away at relegation threatened Valencia, despite making eleven changes from the first leg draw against Arsenal.
That win was Ateltico’s first away from home since the first leg of their Champions League quarter final against Barcelona.
Diego Simeone’s side have been uncharacteristically defensively poor in recent away games, conceding at least two goals in each of their previous three away matches in the league, prior to Saturday’s clean sheet.
Arsenal can also draw encouragement from local rivals Tottenham beating Atletico 3-2 when hosting them in the second leg of the pair’s Champions League last 16 tie in March.
What Happened in the First Leg?
Last Wednesday’s first leg produced a much closer game than Arsenal’s 4-0 demolition of Atletico at the Emirates in October.
Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres gave Arsenal the lead from the penalty spot shortly before half-time after being brought down by Atletico centre-back David Hancko.
The home side played far more assertively early in the second half however, with the strike partnership of Antoine Griezmann and Julian Alvarez regularly troubling the Arsenal centre-back pairing of William Saliba and Gabriel
It was Alvarez who levelled the tie as he slotted his penalty past Arsenal keeper David Raya in the 56th minute.
The penalty had been awarded following a lengthy VAR check which ruled that right-back Ben White had blocked Marcos Llorente’s shot with his hand.
Both sides could have won it late on, with Griezmann hitting the crossbar, and Arsenal having a penalty awarded by referee Danny Makkelie, but immediately overturned by VAR.
Key Battle: Will Fresh Legs Make the Difference?
Simeone started with an entirely different team against Valencia to that which lined up against Arsenal last Wednesday.
His side sit fourth in La Liga, having been out of the title race for much of the season, but are almost certain of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
This has allowed Atletico to rest players before each of their Champions League knockout games, especially following the final of the Copa Del Rey in April, which Ateltico lost on penalties to Real Sociedad.
In contrast, Arsenal are embroiled in a tight title race with Manchester City and started Saturday’s league game knowing that dropping any points would have left the title out of their hands.
Manager Mikel Arteta made five changes for the Fulham game, including bringing captain Bukayo Saka back into the team following Achilles tendon problems.
Concerns over his team’s energy levels may have been somewhat eased by the straightforward nature of the win on Saturday, with Saka substituted at half-time, and Gyokeres, who scored a brace, removed after 64 minutes.
Simeone will look to exploit any Arsenal fitness issues by setting up his side to be hard to break down, and forcing Arsenal’s creative players to regularly drop deep in order to influence the play.
With extra-time a distinct possibility, the strength of Arsenal’s bench may well be crucial to Arteta’s ability to control the game for long periods.
Prediction
The Champions League has been Atletico Madrid’s primary focus for the last month, whereas Arsenal have continued to fight for trophies on multiple fronts.
Last Wednesday’s first leg would suggest that another tense and low-scoring game is likely, but both sides have high-quality creative players to turn to.
Ultimately, Arsenal’s defence at home this season has been stronger than Ateltico’s has on the road, and this may prove decisive.
Arsenal 2-1 Atletico Madrid (Agg: 3-2)
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