Alex Kirkland and James OlleyCloseJames OlleySenior Writer, ESPN FCJames Olley is a senior soccer writer for ESPN.com. Read his archive here and follow him on Twitter: @JamesOlley.Follow on XMultiple AuthorsApr 29, 2026, 06:04 PM ET
Burley: Atletico-Arsenal like a ‘Europa League semifinal’ compared to PSG-Bayern (2:00)Craig Burley can’t imagine either Atletico Madrid or Arsenal stopping PSG or Bayern from winning the Champions League. (2:00)
MADRID — A penalty each from Viktor Gyökeres and Julián Álvarez saw Atlético Madrid and Arsenal share a 1-1 draw in their UEFA Champions League semifinal first leg. After the fireworks delivered by Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich a day earlier, Wednesday’s game at the Metropolitano was, unsurprisingly, a tighter affair.
Gyokeres put visitors Arsenal ahead in the 44th minute, after the forward had drawn a clumsy challenge from Atlético’s Dávid Hancko inside the box.
Atlético rallied after halftime, and Álvarez leveled with a spot kick of his own in the 56th minute, awarded for Ben White’s handball.
Referee Danny Makkelie gave Arsenal another penalty late on, but then overturned his decision after a VAR check — ruling that Hancko had not fouled substitute Eberechi Eze — to leave the tie finely balanced ahead of next week’s second leg in north London. — Alex Kirkland
– Marcotti: Don’t nitpick, just marvel at the talent of PSG and Bayern – Kirkland: Can Griezmann win UCL to leave Atlético on a high? – Hamilton: Could 133 Eredivisie matches be replayed?
In fairness to both teams, almost any game would have struggled to live up to the nine-goal thriller Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich served up 24 hours earlier. And this wasn’t actually a bad game, particularly in the second half when Atlético exploded into life after Álvarez’s equalizer. It was, however, a match that ultimately ended with two penalties and no goals from open play.
At times tonight, it felt like Álvarez was everything for Atlético Madrid: not just their most dangerous forward, but their most creative playmaker and most composed ball-playing midfielder as well.
In the second half, most of the Metropolitano thought Álvarez’s free kick — fast becoming his calling card — had crept inside the post, rather than drift wide. And when he had the chance to level from the penalty spot, there was never any doubt, his execution flawless.
It’s now 10 Champions League goals for Álvarez this season. No Atlético Madrid player has done that before in the history of the competition. Lionel Messi is the only other Argentine player to get into double figures in a Champions League campaign.
The Gunners have been criticized for an approach that focuses on pragmatism and control rather than dynamism and flair, but they got the balance right for the most part here.
Ultimately, this feels like a missed opportunity for Atlético. They had 18 shots, creating 13 chances — two of them classified as big chances by Opta, for Lookman — for an xG of 2.22. But they scored only once, from the penalty spot, and they take a draw with them to the Emirates next week, when they could so easily have gotten a win here.
What a curious player Viktor Gyökeres is. For 45 minutes here, he was exactly what Arsenal needed: holding the ball up, working hard to close down Atlético out of possession and clinical when the opportunity to score came his way. He ended that half with 10 touches but had just five in the following 24 minutes after the break as Arsenal lost control of the game. In fact, between the restart and the 63rd minute, he touched the ball just once.
This game actually had more shots — a combined total of 29 compared with 22 in Paris — but the attacking quality on show at the Metropolitano was nowhere near as good as Tuesday evening. Arsenal will be furious there wasn’t a third penalty after a challenge by Hancko in the box — given on the field but overturned after a lengthy VAR review — and both sides will rue missed chances. But the suspicion that the most likely winner of the Champions League will come from the other half of the draw was not removed here. — James Olley
When Álvarez, tiring and looking in some pain, was substituted in the 77th minute, he was replaced by creative midfielder Álex Baena, reflecting the withdrawn role Álvarez had played on the field. Atlético were less dangerous in his absence, and the same would be true if Álvarez were to depart this summer. Diego Simeone said before the match that interest from Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona in Álvarez is “normal” given his quality. On this display, it’s difficult to argue. He was outstanding, and would improve any team. — Kirkland
Arteta is acutely aware that it has been 20 years since Arsenal reached a Champions League final, and he is determined to ensure they do not fall short because of any naivety — hence the discipline with which he asks his team to play. They are now 13 games unbeaten in this competition, tying their longest-ever streak in the competition. This was a better display than in their away games at Bayer Leverkusen and Sporting CP and they now stand 90 minutes away from the showpiece game in Budapest, a step closer to the end justifying the means. — Olley
The irony is he probably wouldn’t have started this game had Kai Havertz been fit and yet he is now only one goal away from 20 goals in all competitions — the first player to do that since Bukayo Saka reached that milestone two years ago — and the numbers would suggest he is having a perfectly respectable first season in England since his summer move from Sporting CP. And yet, the nagging question remains: Is he capable of defining the biggest games, as Arsenal expect from their big-money No. 9? The jury is probably still out. — Olley
Burley: Atletico-Arsenal like a ‘Europa League semifinal’ compared to PSG-Bayern (2:00)Craig Burley can’t imagine either Atletico Madrid or Arsenal stopping PSG or Bayern from winning the Champions League. (2:00)
Craig Burley can’t imagine either Atletico Madrid or Arsenal stopping PSG or Bayern from winning the Champions League. (2:00)
Alex Kirkland and James OlleyCloseJames OlleySenior Writer, ESPN FCJames Olley is a senior soccer writer for ESPN.com. Read his archive here and follow him on Twitter: @JamesOlley.Follow on XMultiple Authors
CloseJames OlleySenior Writer, ESPN FCJames Olley is a senior soccer writer for ESPN.com. Read his archive here and follow him on Twitter: @JamesOlley.Follow on X
The opening 45 minutes was in fact the quintessential European away game at a tough venue: dig in early on, establish an element of control and then nick a goal. They lost their composure for 15 minutes when Atlético equalized, but Arteta’s positive substitutions — changing his entire forward line to bring on Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Leandro Trossard in a triple substitution with just over 20 minutes remaining — helped them regain a foothold.