Mikel Arteta has been told he can avenge his predecessor Arsene Wenger’s saddest moment by beating Atletico Madrid to take Arsenal to the UEFA Champions League final
Arsenal face Atletico Madrid in the knockout round of a European competition for the first time since Arsene Wenger’s final season with the club. The Gunners can reach the UEFA Champions League final for the first time since 2006.
They are being labelled as clear favourites for the tie, with the first leg taking place in the Spanish capital after Arsenal earned the right to play all their knockout round second leg matches in north London following their perfect eight-win run during the league phase. This included a 4-0 victory over Diego Simeone’s side which will be fresh in the minds of the La Liga club’s manager and players.
It is not only a chance to make history, but also to avenge the disappointment of Wenger’s final season. On the latest episode of Seeing Red, our podcast hosts Tom Canton and John Cross discussed the sadness that was seen in the Frenchman, as he had to face the press following the two-legged defeat to La Rojiblancos in 2018.
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During the episode, Canton said: “We do flashbacks on these shows, so to reference the last time, it was Arsene Wenger’s last season at the club, that could have got Arsenal in the Europa League final, and a victory back then [earned qualification] into the Champions League.
“Arsenal were beaten by Atleti, they drew at the Emirates, it was the other way around the fixtures and the second leg was in Madrid and they lost there after drawing at home and it was seen as an opportunity missed.
“I think Arsenal took the lead and then I think it was [Antoine] Griezmann who scored the equaliser, I think maybe [Alexandre] Lacazette scored the first one in the game from memory and then it might have been Diego Costa I think that scored in Madrid to win the tie overall and that was seen as a real missed opportunity that game, do you think there’s any parallels in that sense or is it very different?”
Cross answered: “I still felt as if Arsenal… I thought that was more 50-50 I think most people would make Arsenal slight favourites in this one but I’ll always remember that one because it was… Wenger was coming to an end and it would have been absolutely amazing [if they won it].
“I always remember sitting in that press conference, it was a big, expansive, almost cinematic press conference room at the stadium, and it is a wonderful new stadium. I’d been to the old one but the new one is great and it’s a really good experience but I always remember sitting in that press conference room and the managers always take it in turns to do their press conference and I think Wenger had to wait on the edge of the stage and they’d just gone out and it was his last, almost, shot at glory we knew it was coming to an end.
“We knew that era, and I just looked across, and it just felt like I remember thinking how sad it was that it ended like this, because in my view, he’s the greatest manager Arsenal have ever had, incredible success.
“You know, later years he became more of an accountant than a football manager, but still managed it, and I just think it would have been an amazing end if he could have enjoyed European success. But it wasn’t to be.”
