Arsenal and Atletico Madrid will head into the second leg of their Champions League semi-final level after a 1-1 draw.
It was a first leg decided by penalty decisions and VAR intervention.
Viktor Gyokeres won and scored a penalty just before half-time to give Arsenal a priceless lead. But that lead was cancelled out in the 56th minute when Julian Alvarez hammered his spot kick into the top corner after Ben White was harshly penalised for handball.
Arsenal were awarded a second penalty in the 79th minute but the VAR officials decided there was not enough contact on Eberechi Eze to justify the on-field decision.
The winner of this two-legged semi-final will face PSG or Bayern Munich in next month’s final.
Arsenal thought they had a shot at the lead after Eze was brought down by Hancko in the box — no such luck.
Also Read: PSG wins in nine-goal thriller Champions league semi
Diego Simeone had plenty to say about it while right behind the referee as he made his decision on the review monitor by the side of the pitch.
It would have been a harsh call but they have certainly been given.
A very decent performance from the hosts, who know plenty about grinding out results when they need to.
They are well in this with the second leg still to come.
Simeone isn’t the only coach with some big decisions to make ahead of the second leg and Eberechi Eze gave Mikel Arteta something to ponder with his display from the bench.
His side were second best for much of the second half but Eze’s performance as a substitute gave them a different dimension to their attacking play.
The former Crystal Palace forward went down a little too easily for the penalty that was given and then overturned but that twist, turn and change of pace was a clear example of the threat he posed.
There will be a real temptation to find a place for him in the starting XI next week.
The draw probably a fair result, and the tie still really in the balance, but Atletico might feel this was a chance missed, especially with the atmosphere generated by their fans.
Simeone’s side just edged the possession over the 90 minutes, and also had more shots (18-11) and more shots on target (4-2). They may well come to rue that missed Lookman chance late on especially.
Arsenal’s system is basically set in stone so there will be a big temptation for Simeone to start the second leg how he ended the first.
NYT
