Arsenal and Atletico Madrid trade tackles tonight in arguably their biggest game of the season, both looking to end their over-a-decade wait for an appearance in the Champions League final to an end.
This game is a calm departure from the momentum and hysteria that greeted last night’s high-pitched contest between PSG and Bayern Munich in Paris.
However, it’s a tie of utmost significant for both sides, who will be gunning for another historic milestone in their Champions League history. Who is likely to secure victory?
Arsenal secured a narrow 1–0 aggregate victory over Sporting Lisbon in the last 16, while Atletico Madrid narrowly edged past domestic rivals Barcelona 3–2 in the quarterfinals.
Both teams won their respective domestic league fixtures at the weekend and will look to carry that momentum into this clash.
Notably, Atletico have won four of their six Champions League home matches this season, with their two defeats coming against Club Brugge in the league phase and Barcelona in the quarterfinal second leg.
Arsenal had a remarkable Champions League league-phase run this season, becoming the only team to finish the phase with a perfect eight-of-eight record. They remain unbeaten in the competition so far and will look to build on that impressive record.
Interestingly, the Premier League title hopefuls are unbeaten across their three European encounters against Atletico Madrid. This includes a dominant 4–0 victory over the La Liga side in league-phase Round 3 of the current campaign at the Emirates Stadium. Can they recreate that dominant performance at the Metropolitano Stadium tonight?
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid have found results hard to come by in the build-up to this match. The Diego Simeone-led have managed just two wins in their last nine matches across all competitions.
Their 3-2 win over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga last weekend ended a four-match losing streak for the Red-Whites. Arsenal also brought their three-game winless run to an end with their narrow 1–0 victory over Newcastle United in the Premier League at the weekend.
Additionally, the Gunners have some crazy stats here to be concerned about their opponents Atletico Madrid. Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid have progressed from six of their last seven semi-final appearances in UEFA club competitions and are unbeaten in 21 of their last 22 UEFA Champions League knockout matches.
Moreover, while the Gunners may have eased past Atletico Madrid in the league phase, they are set for a far more difficult task tonight with Atletico remaining unbeaten in their last six UCL knockout matches at home against English opposition.
Atletico Madrid are returning nearly at full strength with Barrios and Gonzalez the only absentees due to injury. Arsenal are without Kai Havertz (knee injury), Mikel Merino (foot injury), and Jurrien Timber (ankle blow).
