Arsenal vs Atletico Madrid Tickets

The location is North London, and the occasion is a meeting of two genuine European giants looking to secure a strong result in this intriguing UEFA Champions League encounter.

Generally speaking, these two teams are veterans in the UEFA Champions League era, partaking in the tournament pretty much every season of its running (certainly since the re-branding of the European Cup in the early 1990s), but both are still awaiting their first title triumph.

In some ways, their success, or lack thereof in terms of tangible silverware, is very similar in so much as both teams have done more than enough to consistently make their way into the latter stages of the knockout phase without having been able to complete the deal.

In terms of appearances in the final of the competition, in either of its guises, Arsenal fans will forever remember their 2005/06 loss to FC Barcelona in Paris. A game that started awfully got better and then ended in disaster.

Keeper Jens Lehmann was sent off after just 18 minutes of the finale, the first player ever to get a red card in this stage of the competition, after the German brought down Samuel Eto’o outside the box. Incredibly, Arsenal rallied, and defender Sol Campbell put the Premier League side ahead after 37 minutes, and they held onto the lead until the 76th minute before Eto’o equalized, and four minutes later, Brazilian Juliano Belletti netted the winner to secure a cruel defeat for Arsene Wenger’s side.

Atletico Madrid’s record in the final of the competition has been similarly lacking in terms of a title, and they’ve reached that stage on no less than three occasions.

The first time came in 1973/74 when they faced a monumental challenge against an all-conquering Bayern Munich side that included legends like Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Muller. Still, Juan Carlos Lorenzo’s side did incredibly well to secure a 1-1 draw in their first meeting, with the Germans being fortunate to level in the 120th minute of the clash in Brussels.

In the replay, just two days later, Bayern Munich took no prisoners and thumped the Spanish side 4-0. Under Diego Simeone, the Colchoneros faced Real Madrid in the 2014 UEFA Champions League Final, and after 93 minutes, the Argentine boss looked to have finally secured the prize for Atletico, only for Sergio Ramos to score a very late leveler to force the Lisbon tie to extra-time. Seemingly, that late goal has taken the wind out of the Atletico sails, and goals from Gareth Bale, Marcelo, and Cristiano Ronaldo saw Real Madrid secure a 4-1 win.

Two years later, Simeone got to do it all over again in Milan. This time, Ramos gave Real Madrid the lead after 15 minutes, and Yannick Ferreira Carrasco scored with ten minutes left to take the game to extra time and then penalties. Juanfran missed the crucial spot-kick, and Cristiano Ronaldo, who else, stepped up to score Real’s fifth penalty to win yet another UEFA Champions League crown.

Arsenal vs Atletico Madrid Head-to-Head

Arsenal and Atletico Madrid have never met before in the UEFA Champions League, but their paths have crossed in the UEFA Europa League when the two went head-to-head in the Semi-Finals of the competition.

Alexandre Lacazette gave Arsenal the lead at home before Antoine Griezmann scored a late equalizer, and in the return leg, a Diego Costa goal just before the break settled the tie, and Atletico Madrid then went on to beat Marseille in the final of the competition.

Arsenal vs Atletico Madrid Connections

A number of players have featured for both the Gunners and Atletico, and these include Uruguayan midfield battler Lucas Torreira, Ghana international Thomas Partey, and Spanish forward Lucas Perez.

Another individual who represented both teams was Spanish international winger Jose Antonio Reyes. The talented wide-man left Sevilla to join Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal in 2004, and he impressed in his two-and-a-half seasons with the club, scoring 23 times over the course of 110 appearances, during which he won the Premier League and FA Cup and helped Arsenal to the UEFA Champions League Final in 2006.

After a season on loan at Real Madrid (where he secured a La Liga winners medal), he joined Atletico in 2007 and played 154 games for the club, scoring 14 times and went on to win two UEFA Europa League titles and a UEFA Super Cup. Sadly, Reyes was killed in a car crash in 2019 at the age of just 35.