MADRID.- He Atlético de Madrid and the Arsenal They tied 1-1 this Wednesday in their match in the first leg of the semifinals of the Champions League European, leaving everything to be decided for next week in London.
A prison transformed by the Swede Viktor Gyökeres (44′) put the Gunners ahead, but another maximum penalty, scored by the Argentine Julian Alvarez (56′), balanced the tie, which preserves all the emotion before the second and final round.
The red and whites can continue dreaming of reaching their first Champions League final since the one they lost in 2016 on penalties against the Real Madrid.
The worst news for the whole of Diego Simeone facing the return was the injury to Álvarez, who had to retire with discomfort in an ankle (75′).
If he cannot be in London next week, his absence would be a hard blow for the red and white attack in the final match.
Faced with the madness seen on Tuesday between the PSG and the Bayern Munichthe other two contenders to be in the Budapest final, Arsenal and Atlético, presented a much more controlled match, which accelerated in the second half.
Well armed at the back, the two teams tried to avoid any surprise on the Metropolitano pitch this Wednesday, especially in the first 45 minutes.
Control without mordant
Arsenal took control of the ball, but in a sterile domain without finding a way to penetrate the defensive wall set up by Atlético.
The rojiblancos tried to look for their opportunities in a few counterattacks, although they only had a shot from Álvarez from the balcony of the area that was stopped by the goalkeeper David Raya (14).
The game seemed to be heading into the break with a tie, when the center back David Hanko He knocked down Gyökeres causing a penalty that the Swedish attacker himself converted (44).
Atlético went into offensive mode after returning from the break, led by Antoine Griezmannwhich had barely come into play in the first 45 minutes.
As soon as the Frenchman, who played his last Champions League game as a red and white player at the Metropolitano, took control, Atlético was transformed.
The red and white team took a step forward by putting pressure on Arsenal, who ended up struggling to get out of their area.
Álvarez warned with a great free kick shot from the edge of the area that hit the side of the net (49).
The Nigerian winger Ademola Lookman He fired a shot at point-blank range that Raya rejected. Griezmann collected the rebound, but his goal-bound shot was deflected by a defender (53rd).
Julian equalizes
In the middle of the local gale, a hand of Ben White in the area was punished with a penalty that Álvarez converted (56).
With the score tied, Atlético continued attacking an Arsenal that practically disappeared from the field.
The chances continued for the locals with a shot against the crossbar from Griezmann (63) or another shot practically alone against the Lookman goalkeeper for Raya to shine (74).
Arsenal managed to catch their breath with the entrances of Gabriel Jesus, Saka and Trossard (65), helped by the break of a few minutes to review a penalty in favor of the ‘Gunners’, which the referee ended up annulling after going to the VAR to see it.
In what was practically Arsenal’s only chance in the second half, Cristhian Mosquera He fired a shot that took Jan Oblak (86).
The ‘Gunners’ managed to turn the final minutes into an exchange of blows, but the scoreboard no longer moved.
