Atletico Madrid issued a complaint to UEFA after fireworks were set off outside their hotel before the Champions League semi-final second leg against Arsenal
Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid saw their preparations to face Arsenal disrupted by fireworks being set off early into Tuesday morning(Image: (Steven Paston/PA Wire))
Atletico Madrid have reportedly lodged a complaint with UEFA after fireworks were let off outside their London hotel in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
The disturbance occurred ahead of Tuesday evening’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Arsenal, following last week’s 1-1 stalemate in Spain. Spanish publication Marca claims Atletico were quick to flag their frustration to UEFA.
Marca’s report also shed further light on the precise sequence of events, revealing the first fireworks were set off at 1:30am. Just 20 minutes later, more loud bangs rang out near the team’s hotel, with at least one player’s sleep disturbed as a result.
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Despite the unwelcome disruption endured by his squad, Simeone will be relieved to have several key players available in north London.
Fireworks were reportedly set off outside Atletico Madrid’s team hotel in London(Image: Marca)
Concerns over the fitness of Julian Alvarez, Giuliano Simeone, Marcos Llorente and David Hancko had emerged over the past week, yet all four have been included in the travelling party.
Pablo Barrios and Nico Gonzalez are the only notable absentees from the Atletico squad, although Alexander Sorloth has made the trip despite having not featured in their last two matches.
Mikel Arteta also provided some encouraging injury updates with Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard poised to return to his Arsenal squad.
On Monday, he said: “Great [to have them back], because we need options, we need the capacity to play different games tomorrow, whether it’s from the start or after. So it’s really, really good news for us to have them both back.”
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While Arsenal’s immediate attention is on the Champions League, Everton, and notably Thierno Barry, handed them a significant advantage in the Premier League title battle against Manchester City.
Pep Guardiola’s team had the opportunity to match the Gunners’ 3-0 victory over Fulham but couldn’t manage it as they drew 3-3 at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Were it not for a stoppage-time Jeremy Doku leveller, City would be trailing Arsenal by six points and even with the late strike, the title race is now firmly in the grasp of Arteta and his squad.
Alongside the three remaining league fixtures, Arsenal will be hoping to compete in a European final at the end of May, with either Bayern Munich or Paris Saint-Germain as their opposition. The two heavyweights meet in their own semi-final second leg on Wednesday in Germany, following last week’s dramatic 5-4 triumph for PSG.
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Arsenal have reached the UEFA Champions League semi-finals where they host Atlético Madrid in the second leg on May 5. Fans can watch the game for free with an Amazon Prime subscription or 30-day trial.