Arsenal 1-0 Atletico Madrid: Report & Player Ratings

Arsenal 1-0 Atletico Madrid: UEFA Champions League Semi-Final (2nd Leg)

N5's Magic Night

Emirates Stadium saw one of its greatest nights as Arsenal reached the UEFA Champions League final for just the second time in the history of the club. As a 1-0 win was enough over Atletico Madrid.

After an impressive showing on Sunday at home to Fulham, Mikel Arteta opted to start with the same side that faced off against the West London side, including starting young midfielder Myles Lewis-Skelly after his strong performance against Marco Silva's team.

After a tense affair in the first leg in Madrid, which saw a penalty each scored in a 1-1 draw, both sides knew just a win would be enough to send them to Budapest for a chance at the ultimate glory.

And this particular encounter started in similar fashion, with little chances opening up in the early stages.

Neither goalkeeper was tested as both teams remained focused on discipline, however just before half-time, space opened up in the Atletico box for Leandro Trossard to fire a shot at Jan Oblak, the Slovenian kept out the Belgian with a strong stop, but couldn’t deny Bukayo Saka tapping in from close range on the rebound to give Arsenal a crucial lead just before the break. Sending Emirates Stadium, which had been roaring it's full voice pre-match, wild.

Bukayo Saka steers Arsenal in-front vs Atletico! 🔴🤩 pic.twitter.com/FLF6cx3wcf

— Prime Video Sport UK (@primevideosport) May 5, 2026

The goal came at the perfect time for Mikel Arteta's team, after a first half which saw the majority of the ball but lacked clear cut chances due to the defensive shape of their Spanish opponents.

Half-Time: Arsenal 1-0 Atletico Madrid

Just like last week at the Metropolitano, Atletico started strong in the opening stages of the second half. And could’ve so easily grabbed an equaliser soon after the break as Gialano Simeone pounced on a poor back pass, rounded David Raya but just as he had an empty net, Gabriel managed to put in a challenge to divert his shot away in an impressive and crucial piece of defending.

Atletico saw more of the ball during the second half, as they chased a leveller in the game and tie. Arsenal potentially could count themselves lucky not to have given away a penalty, as Riccardo Calafiori brought down Antoine Griezmann, however Gabriel was judged to have been fouled just before, despite little contact between him and the Atletico’s Marc Pubill.

Victor Gyokeres, who proved a hard-working handful all night, nearly put Arsenal in a commanding position midway through the second period, getting on the end of a powerful., low cross from substitute Piero Hincapie. However, the Swede failed to keep his effort down.

Arsenal's defence remained strong, as Atletico tried and tried to find a way through, Raya and the back four in red and white kept their nerve, with the Arsenal goalkeeper being relatively unchallenged as the second half wore on.

Emotions ran high on the touchline during the five minutes of added time, with Arsenal Sporting Director Andrea Berta squaring up to Diego Simeone in the final moments of the game, before the final whistle blew. Sparking wild scenes both in the stands on the pitch as the Arsenal fans and players danced, hugged, jumped and celebrated as Arsenal reached it's first Champions League final in twenty years, and just the second in the club's history.

The moment Arsenal reached the UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL 🤩🔴 pic.twitter.com/jxYGeQ47Zp

— Prime Video Sport UK (@primevideosport) May 5, 2026

The Gunners will wait 24 hours for their opponents in the final in Hungary's capital city of Budapest, as Bayern Munich host Paris Saint-Germain at the Allianz Arena in Munich.

Full-Time: Arsenal 1-0 Atletico Madrid

Arsenal Player Ratings

• Raya (GK): 8

• White: 8

• Saliba: 7

• Gabriel: 8

• Calafiori: 6

• Rice: 8

• Lewis-Skelly: 8

• Saka: 7

• Eze - 6

• Trossard - 7

• Gyokeres: 7

Atletico Madrid Player Ratings

• Oblak (GK): 6

• Pubill: 6

• Le Normand: 6

• Hancko: 6

• Ruggari: 7

• Lookman: 5

• Koke: 5

• Llorente - 6

• Simeone: 6

• Alvarez: 6

• Griezmann: 6