Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal Tickets

Atletico Madrid and Arsenal have something in common, and that’s their collective failure to secure a top-tier European title, despite having both been to the final, only to lose out to superior opposition on the day.

The Colchoneros are repeat visitors to the final, having secured a berth in both the European Cup and in the UEFA Champions League era.

Indeed, the club’s first involvement in the competition came in 1958/59, when they took part as Spanish champions, only to lose to Real Madrid in the Semi-Finals, with Atletico’s local rivals competing in the European Cup as holders of the title.

In 1974 they reached their first European Cup Final, where they met Bayern Munich. The first clash between the two ended in a 1-1 draw, and the Bavarian giants romped home 4-0 in the replay in Brussels two days later.

Atletico’s first UEFA Champions League campaign took place in 1996/97 when they did well to reach the Quarter-Finals before losing to Ajax.

In 2014 Diego Simeone’s side faced off against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League Final, and Diego Godin’s first-half goal looked set to give Atletico their first crown, only for Sergio Ramos to grab an equalizer in the third minute of injury time. That took the stuffing out of Atleti as they conceded three more goals in extra time to lose 4-1.

Two years later, they lost to the same opponents, this time via the agony of penalties; indeed, in each of four successive seasons from 2013/14 to 2016/17, their run was halted by Real Madrid on every occasion.

Arsenal’s involvement in the UEFA Champions League was consistent under Arsene Wenger, with the French boss securing safe passage to the competition in every season from 2000/01 to 2016/17, and on each occasion, his side managed to get through the initial group stage.

The North London club’s most successful spell came between 2005/06 and 2009/10 when the club made it to the Quarter-Finals twice, the Semi-Finals once, and in 2005/06, got all the way to the UEFA Champions League Final.

There, they faced FC Barcelona and went down to ten men after just 18 minutes when keeper Jens Lehmann was shown a red card. Nonetheless, Sol Campbell gave Arsenal the lead, one they held onto until the 76 minute, which is when first Samuel Eto’o and then, four minutes later, Juliano Belletti scored for the Catalan side to break the hearts of the watching Gunners fans.

Between 2017/18 and 2022/23, the club failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League, but Mikel Arteta broke that cycle by taking the club to a superb second-place finish in the Premier League to earn them a route back to the top table of European football.

Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal Head-to-Head

These two teams have only met in Europe in one single campaign, that coming in the 2017/18 UEFA Europa League at the Semi-Final stage. The first leg ended in a 1-1 draw, that despite the fact that Simeone’s side were down to ten men after just ten minutes following a red card shown to Sime Vrsaljko.

Diego Costa scored the only goal of the second leg to take Atletico through to the final, where they beat Marseille comfortably 3-0.

Atletico Madrid vs Arsenal Connections

A number of players have represented both Atletico Madrid and Arsenal, including midfielder Thomas Partey and Lucas Torreira.

Another star to line up for both teams was the late Jose Antonio Reyes. The cultured Spanish winger moved to Arsenal from Sevilla in 2004 and became an instant hit with the club’s fans.

He played 110 times across two and a half seasons with the Premier League side, scoring 23 goals and helping Wenger’s side to a domestic title and an FA Cup win. After a long spell at Real Madrid, Reyes joined Atletico in 2007 and, over the course of four seasons, played 154 times and scored 14 goals, going on to win two UEFA Europa League trophies.

Sadly Reyes passed away after a car crash in June 2019.