Atletico Madrid face Arsenal in the semi-finals of the Champions League and Diego Simeone’s side have suffered a potential blow to any momentum built
Arsenal’s upcoming Champions League semi-final opponents Atletico Madrid suffered a heart-breaking defeat to Real Sociedad on Saturday. Diego Simeone’s side were favourites to win the Copa Del Rey but were beaten on penalties which denied them a major mental boost before taking on the Gunners later this month.
As they did to set up a semi-final clash with Mikel Arteta’s side, Atleti beat Barcelona over two legs to reach the final while Sociedad knocked out Athletic Club. The underdogs took a shock lead through Ander Barrenetxea after just 15 seconds, though Ademola Lookman grabbed the equaliser midway through the first half.
Mikel Oyarzabal put Sociedad back ahead just before the interval but a late Julian Alvarez strike took the game to extra-time and later penalties with no goals scored in that 30-minute period.
Alexander Sorloth and Alvarez both missed their spot-kicks while Sociedad scored three of their four to capture a domestic trophy. Simeone spoke on a number of topics after the brutal loss, including a clear message when asked about Arsenal.
FOLLOW OUR ARSENAL FB PAGE! Latest Gunners news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page
According to Marca, he said: “First, I want to congratulate our opponents. We reacted well to the first goal, then continued at a slow pace. Then halftime arrived, we talked things through, and we changed our approach, playing the game we needed to play.
“We could have scored a third with Johnny [Cardoso] or [Alex] Baena. Then in extra time, we each had a chance: Julián’s shot hit the post and Musso made the save. We competed very well, but unfortunately, they won the penalties. Congratulations to them.”
“There’s not much to say [to the players], just be there for them. They made a huge effort, but the game was decided in the 90 minutes, it was Johnny’s or Baena’s goal. But as we always say, they were the ones who showed that clinical finishing, and we weren’t.”
When asked about the Champions League, he replied: “I’m not thinking about Arsenal. Today hurts a lot; we needed to win, but we couldn’t. The way we competed gives me a lot of peace of mind.”
Atletico are firmly out of the La Liga title race and thus the Champions League is their only chance at claiming silverware this season. Arsenal meanwhile, could also soon only be focused on Europe after losing 2-1 to title rivals Manchester City on Sunday, which could also come as a blow to their confidence.
The first leg against Atletico is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, April 29 at the Metropolitano Stadium with the second leg scheduled for the following Tuesday in north London.
On the other side of the bracket, Bayern Munich take on Paris Saint-Germain after their quarter-final triumphs over Real Madrid and Liverpool, respectively.
Arteta has seen his players already defeat Atletico and Bayern during the league stage this season but they were beaten by PSG, who went on to win the competition, in last season’s semi-finals.
Luis Enrique’s side have also beaten other English sides such as Aston Villa and Chelsea in Europe over the last 18 months and may need to defeat Arsenal for the second consecutive campaign to retain their crown.
