Atletico Madrid were left fuming after their 1-0 Champions League defeat to Arsenal in the semi-final second leg, with penalty controversy, referee concerns and a UEFA complaint adding frustration
Atletico Madrid are seething following their contentious Champions League elimination against Arsenal. The La Liga side suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, with Bukayo Saka’s first-half strike proving decisive.
Diego Simeone’s men toiled relentlessly throughout a match littered with flashpoints, yet failed to find the net. Predictably, tempers flared in stoppage time, with former Atletico sporting director Andrea Berta – now in Arsenal’s employ – becoming embroiled in a confrontation with Simeone near the dugout.
Yet Atletico’s grievances had begun well before kick-off. According to Spanish outlet AS, Simeone and his squad felt aggrieved even prior to touching down in north London.
The Spanish side were disgruntled upon discovering that German referee Daniel Siebert would be officiating the semi-final second leg. Siebert has now taken charge of four of their matches against English clubs, none of which Atletico have won. Furthermore, Bastian Dankert was on VAR duty and has now presided over Atletico’s last three Champions League exits.
Then, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, Arsenal supporters set off a volley of fireworks in a bid to disrupt Atletico’s players’ sleep. Club officials are now reportedly weighing up whether to lodge a formal complaint with UEFA. When they travelled to the Emirates at approximately 6pm on Tuesday, Atletico’s bus was without an escort for much of the journey. Home fans had gathered outside the ground and delivered a hostile reception to the visiting party.
Once proceedings commenced, several refereeing calls that disadvantaged Atletico compounded their exasperation. Early in the second period, Giuliano Simeone, Diego’s son, appeared poised to level by converting into an unguarded goal before tumbling following contact with Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes.
Siebert dismissed Atletico’s passionate protests and following a VAR review, Dankert concurred. Two minutes afterwards, Riccardo Calafiori felled Antoine Griezmann inside the area and it would’ve been an obvious spot-kick had Gabriel not been fouled in the build-up.
Atletico also believed that five minutes of added time proved inadequate. As the match entered its closing stages, Arsenal employed every tactic to disrupt proceedings.
Gabriel Martinelli stalled the restart at one point by launching a ball into the spectators. Kepa Arrizabalaga, who was among the substitutes, then kicked the ball away after it came back to the touchline.
Following the final whistle, Giuliano Simeone was sufficiently incensed that he turned to Instagram. The winger shared a photograph of a challenge by Arsenal’s Riccardo Calafiori, showing him bundling Simeone off possession.
His father, however, was unwilling to linger on refereeing controversies when questioned about the Griezmann incident. “I’m not going to get into that,” Simeone, who was calm after the final whistle and congratulated Arsenal’s players, replied.
“We all know it was a foul. We all thought that the referee had got it right. I’m not going to get involved in that because I don’t want to make excuses.”
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