Atlético Madrid lost 1-0 to Arsenal in the semi-final second leg and were kicked out of the Champions League, but their feelings on a number of controversial decisions have been made clear
Atletico Madrid are unhappy with referee Daniel Siebert (Image: Gaspafotos/MB Media/Getty Images)
Atletico Madrid are furious after their controversial exit from the Champions League by Arsenal. The La Liga side suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat at the Emirates thanks to a first-half goal from Bukayo Saka.
Diego Simeone’s side held their breath in a game full of flashpoints, but were unable to score a goal. Unsurprisingly, tensions boiled over in stoppage time, with former Atletico sporting director Andrea Berta, now at Arsenal, getting into an argument with Simeone near the dugout.
But Atlético were unhappy even before the ball was kicked. According to Spanish outlet As, Simeone and his team were upset even before they arrived in north London.
Atlético were not happy after learning that German referee Daniel Siebert would be in charge of the second leg of the semi-final. Sievert has currently refereed four matches against the England team, but has been unable to win any of them. Additionally, Bastian Dunkert has been involved in VAR, overseeing Atlético’s last three Champions League exits.
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read more: Diego Simeone showed his true colors with his reaction to the final whistle against Arsenalread more: Bukayo Saka admits he knows who Arsenal want to play in the Champions League final
And in the early hours of Tuesday morning, Arsenal fans set off a series of fireworks in an attempt to disrupt Atletico players’ sleep. Club leaders are now said to be considering filing a complaint with UEFA.
Atlético’s bus was unescorted for most of the journey as they traveled to the Emirates around 6pm on Tuesday. Home supporters waited outside the stadium and gave the visitors a warm welcome.
Once the match started, a number of decisions that went against Atlético added to their frustration. Giuliano Simeone, Diego’s son, looked set to equalize early in the second half with a shot into an empty net, but he was brought down by contact with Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhães.
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Gabriel Magalhaes contacted Giuliano Simeone but was given nothing (Image: Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Sievert brushed off Atlético’s passionate appeals and Dankert agreed after a VAR check. Two minutes later, Riccardo Calafioli brought down Antoine Griezmann in the box, which would have been a clear penalty had Gabriel not been fouled in the build-up.
Atlético also felt that five minutes of stoppage time was not enough. As time ticked down, Arsenal did everything in their power to stop play.
Gabriel Martinelli threw the ball into the crowd, briefly delaying the restart. The ball then returned to the sideline and was kicked out by Kepa Arrizabalaga, who was on the bench.
Giuliano Simeone, who finished full-time, was so upset that he posted on Instagram. The winger posted a picture of the challenge from Arsenal’s Riccardo Calafioli as he pushed Simeone off the ball.
Giuliano Simeone vents his anger on Instagram (Image: Instagram/giulisimeone)
Kepa Arrizabalaga kicks the ball away (Image: Instagram/helen1lucas)
However, his father did not want to dwell on the referee’s decision after being asked about the Griezmann incident. “I’m not going to get into that,” said Simeone, who calmly congratulated his Arsenal players after the final whistle.
“We all know it was a foul. We all thought the referee made the right call. I’m not going to get involved in it because I don’t want to make excuses.”
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