Arsenal underlined their credentials as a real European force with a scintillating second half display tonight to devastate one of the most consistent and obdurate European powers in Atlético Madrid. Mikel Arteta picked a side with only two changes from the win at Fulham, MLS coming in at left back and Martinelli taking over the left sided attacking role from Saturday’s scorer Leandro Trossard.
The evening began most agreeably with an early dinner with the Countrymen in Holloway Road at a packed eaterie which we frequent regularly. During the meal we had a very pleasant conversation (in English!) with two extremely nice Atletico supporters delighted to be in London even if their early CL fixtures threw up two English heavyweights.
The first half was a fast moving chess game with both sides probing and closing down effectively. Atletico’s tactic was to impose a mid-block giving Arsenal more space than they usually enjoy to build attacks from the back. Saka was particularly dangerous on the right flank, combining well on several occasions with Eze and Timber. Arsenal employed a high press looking to restrict Atletico’s ability to move the ball swiftly and Arsenal had the lion’s share of possession in a first half that was tactically fascinating if perhaps not quite as aesthetically pleasing as we would ideally have liked. Aside from Saka, Arsenal were very well-served by Gyökeres who proved a powerful, mobile and very hard-working fulcrum upfront. He looked more at home in this company than he often has in the Premier League and he was one of the standout players for Arsenal tonight.
The game almost began with a sensational early goal from a deflected Eze shot which hit the bar. Saka was just foiled when through by a brave piece of goalkeeping from Oblak and Arsenal continued to take the game to Atletico who looked organised and resilient and almost took the lead midway through the half. Raya, as is his wont took something of a risk in running out to the left wing to foil Alvarez, slide-tackling him on the touch line to put the ball out of play. Simeone recovered the ball quickly and threw it to Alvarez who threaded a shot just wide of the vacant goal from the right wing. Atletico then produced a sustained attack following a break from Alvarez but Arsenal eventually smothered the danger. Zubimendi was then booked rendering him unavailable for one of the gentler ties they face against Slavia Prague. That felt to me like a convenient and pragmatic booking but it rendered Zubimendi vulnerable to a second yellow against volatile and theatrical opponents. Gimenez then showed Atletico’s brutal side with a blatant body check on Gyokeres resulting in a deserved yellow card.
Arsenal thought they had broken through close to halftime when Martinelli turned a cross from Saka on the right wing into the goal at the far post but he was judged narrowly offside. Half time came with the deadlock unbroken. I had found proceedings fascinating but there was little indication of the thunder that Arsenal were to unleash.
Halftime – Arsenal 0 Atletico 0
A conversation I overheard at halftime made me despair, one Gooner saying to another that he had found proceedings boring. If you find high octane, technically precise football at this level boring you need to find another pastime. I found it enthralling despite being goalless. Arsenal were mixing it very effectively with a European powerhouse who had recently thrashed Real Madrid 5-1.
When the second half began Alvarez hit the bar with a spectacular effort and a beautiful improvised chip by Zubimendi, a trademark move of his, almost set up Gyökeres. My bladder told me that I needed to take a loo break and while I was there a beautiful delivery from a free kick on the left by Declan Rice found Gabriel who he headed decisively home.
Arsenal 1 Atletico 0 – Gabriel
Atletico came back with a flurry of attacks and a raft of substitutions but in the 64th minute a sinuous and determined dribble took MLS deep into the centre of Atletico territory where he set up Martinelli for a curling drive across Oblak and just inside the right hand post.
Arsenal 2 Atletico 0 – Martinelli
Arsenal were rampant now. In the 67th minute a sustained piece of pressure saw the ball fall to Gyökeres in the 6-yard box and his shot deflected into the corner wrong-footing Oblak.
Arsenal 3 Atletico 0 – Gyökeres
Three minutes later a long Rice corner from the left found Gabriel whose header back across goal was turned in with his lower abdomen by Gyökeres.
Arsenal 4 Atletico 0 – Gyökeres
Arsenal brought off Eze, Zubimendi, Gyökeres (to a standing ovation) then Gabriel (likewise) and Timber replacing them with Nwaneri, Nørgaard, Merino, Mosquera and Ben White. Arsenal were determined not to yield their clean sheet and flattened the game very effectively amid an atmosphere of unalloyed delight.
This was a statement performance by an Arsenal side who are beginning to look as good as we have hoped they might be, taking on and crushing one of the most difficult sides to beat in Europe. It was a night when we could have picked any number of candidates for Man of the Match. I found it impossible on what was a night to savour and enjoy. I am starting to feel that we will have many more days and nights to savour this season.
Thanks TTG, an accurate summary of events as ever, a pleasant meal with C100 and son plus watching The Arsenal dismantle a decent side – a happy day indeed.
The Alvarez shot that hit the bar was an obvious turning point I suppose as it’s a different game if they nick one. But inch perfect from Declan just after that and we’re one up.
Brilliant from MLS to run through a midfield that Simeone had much changed a minute earlier, I wonder if MLS thought they might not have got organized yet or just a coincidence? Anyway, great finish from Gabi M.
I was watching the dash cam just before our first goal. Arteta’s hand signalling surged to a high level in a form of code I haven’t seen before. I’ve re-watched the video several times and it’s eventually come clear that he’s using a form of hand morse. I’ve broken the code (even without the help of my Enigma machine which I don’t have with me). It’s clear:
“TTG has gone for a fookin pee break, it’s time to put one in the back of the fookin net”
Excellent tactic, TTG and every bit as fine as your splendid match report and Arsenal’s performance over the full 90 minutes.
Thank you for a report that offered as much to enjoy and savour as the outcome of the match itself, TTG. We should remind ourselves that Alvarez twice had big chances to put Atletico ahead before our salvo of goals came; Atletico defending a 1-0 lead would have made for a different sort of absorbing tactical battle. Equally, we shouldn’t forget that we have deservedly beaten one of Europe’s top sides, restricting them to a single shot on target. The clean sheet was the ninth in 12 matches this season. Last term, it took 21 matches to reach nine clean sheets.
Also, how good was Rice’s free kick for Gabriel’s goal? Undefendably good, is the answer.
Excellent report, TTG. Good to see you have been folded into Arteta’s tactical machinations, as worked out by BtM.
Atleti under Simeone do not get beaten 4-0. Yes we had a touch of luck with Alvarez hitting the bar in the second half, but so did they when Eze’s deflected shot looped onto their bar. Other than that, they barely touched us- a quite amazing defensive display. And to be honest, I think we still haven’t got out of second gear in an attacking sense. After Christmas we could be a sight to behold.
Re the loo conversation you overheard, it’s truly bizarre how some people think. Were the protagonists “Prawn Sandwich Brigade” types or genuine fans? Anyone who has seen so many seasons of dross, in my case in the 70’s, 80’s and 2010’s, truly understands what boring looks like. Entitled is the descriptor of those people which races most readily to front-of-mind.
CER
It was the loo by block 99 and they were not prawn sandwich types , just two chaps in need of the loo. In fact the queue was so long I decided not to join it , hence my need to widdle about ten minutes in. I blame C100 who forced me to drink beer against my will .
As I rushed up the steps of block 100 , with joy unconfined all around me , I asked the steward what happened . I didn’t realise that he was an actuary because his reply was 100% accurate and totally useless. ‘ Arsenal have scored ‘ he said . ‘ Who got it?’ , I asked . ‘ A big bloke ‘ he said . I assume we are employing Spuds as stewards .
I have a confession to make. I love Champions League nights at the Emirates. I love the crisp autumnal air, the look of the green grass under the flood lights, playing teams we don’t play twice a year every year and even that theme tune as the kids in the centre circle waggle that round piece of plastic.
Last night, even by CL night standards was special. A very nice dinner, with TTG (he drinks too much you know, I was sipping red wine not glugging pints of fizzy lager and I didn’t miss any goals because of the need to make water). I also greatly enjoyed our discussion with two very civilised Athletico fans at the next table. They told us to watch out for Alvarez and they were right.
That second half, right in front of us in block 7 in the North Bank, was outstanding. There was a beauty to the way that Declan stepped up to the free kick and sent it arcing and spinning right onto big Gabi’s head. There was, frankly awe at the run from MLS as the Athletico defence parted like the Red Sea, followed by the TH14 impression from little Gabi as he opened his body and struck the ball into the net. Then it was the Victor show. I swear the second one was via his wedding tackle!
What a night!
CER@5: You are right that those of us of a certain age do know what a boring — and poor — Arsenal team looks like. The current iteration is not it.
C100@7: Shades of William Gallas…
Ned@9 – Heh!
TTG@6- As one who spent his career in the Insurance world, is there any truth in the adage that “Actuaries are people who couldn’t stand the excitement of accountancy”?
You could tell it was a joyous night at the Ems, because, even on the US broadcast, some of the songs were coming through loud and clear. Usually, the crowd is muted to indecipherability in case some obscenity like ‘Tottnumb’ offends sensitive viewers on this side of the pond.
CER@10: I’m not sure about actuaries, but I know auditors are the folks who certify that all figures are right except where wrong.
Ned @11, I’d say it was up there with Barcelona 2011 and Read Madrid last season. I am blessed to have been at all three and the feeling of floating out of the ground and out down Holloway Road has been the same. Truly, for someone like me who loves the emotional charge of football more than the intellectual challenge of tactics these are the nights that live in the memory.
His name is Victor, Victor Gykores!
https://x.com/colelam2007/status/1980746484447322527?s=61&t=cVFjCyGkt4y-Ne45LtfqkQ
An excellent account of a very fine evening, sir. I too partook of an exquisite pre-match repast – at the usual place, of 30 years habit – where the welcome was warm and the beef cheeks ‘buonissimo’!
I do agree with you that it’s impossible to select a single MotM though I can understand why Viktor was awarded the trophy. While his brace were wildly celebrated and he had earned them by his work rate and determination, it’s hard not to recognise Gabriel as the key contributor with his opening goal, critical block at 1-0 and assist for our fourth.
Hopefully this match is the harbinger of opened floodgates for Viktor and the benchmark of the team’s future ruthlessness.
https://shewore.com/
To TTG’s point about the entitled lavatory loiterers
CER
An actuary is someone who married Scarlett Johansson for her money .
An extrovert actuary is someone who looks at your shoes when you are talking to them etc,etc
Arteta seems to bring out negativity in a lot of fans. For non- Arsenal fans it’s jealousy because he is a world class coach. But for Arsenal fans I have absolutely no idea why there is almost a visceral dislike of a man who has rebuilt the club .We have many fools following our club
Adam Clery on Gyokeres;
Excellent report, TTG.
If you need more content, this Harvey Gration lad is pretty good.
MCMBD
Thanks LG and Ned, good links.
I think Clery is fair on Gyökeres and the graph
that showed how many runs he was making was
very telling, he certainly gives us something we
have not had for a while.
Thanks TTG – I’m with you – thought the first half was very interesting. You do have to wonder how long some of our “fans” have been following the Arsenal and what exactly they expect to see. Wonder if they’d ever heard of Atletico Madrid ?
Apart from fitness issues and “managing minutes” I hope this is going to mean that Martinelli is the preferred starter on the left and Trossard can perform his super sub role which he is very good at. He does seem to struggle to make anything like the same impact as a starter.
Gabriel – the big one – is just fantastic. I absolutely loved the way he celebrated the defensive block just after his goal with as much passion as the goal itself.
4-0 is an unbelievable result against a team like Atleti. I thought Simeone was going to need the help of the St John’s staff at one point. Much as we would all love to win the biggest trophies, we have to keep the opposition in context. Oil funded national states and cheats. If we can beat them all, just brilliant. Personally I’m proud of what the manager, the players, the academy and, let’s be fair, the owners have done for this club – win or lose.
The pathetic nature of a significant proportion of our fanbase is evidenced by the number of messages that Charles Watts has received from viewers of his YouTube vlogs complaining that there is a closed door in the background of the screen in the room in which he records his vlogs in his new accommodation. They find it unsettling. OMG! What a state the world is going to be in when these people take over. I am assuming that these are Millennials but who knows? Does the Arsenal benefit from the support of such snowflakes? I think not.
Bath/ Trev
I’m astonished that a bit of a Frank Out movement has developed ! I heard a Spud on the radio complaining that their football is much more boring than Ange’s and his results are not as good as Ange’s initial results .
This follows on from a lady I am seeing tonight ( purely platonically of course ) who is a Liverpool ST holder who tells me that she has heard spectators at Anfield say that Slot has taken the club as far as he can and it’s time for a change- a few months after leading them to the league in a canter !
Have we really reached a time when fans demand change after a bad month where their team doesn’t win all its games? Modern fans eh!
TTG – “purely platonically of course” – methinks thou dost protest too much, Sir !
And what goes on at Liverpool ST stays at Liverpool ST – one of my favourite stations !
Oooh, Trev, you naughty boy!
Bath@22 and TTG@23: It is a reflection that, for so many younger people online, there is now an expectation of instant perfection in all aspects of life, demanded with a few wiggles of the thumbs, but with no thought to how unrealistic that is.
At least we, as a generation, have put in the time developing our curmudgeonliness…
This is not helped, I should add, by the red-top press in the UK, whose views spin 180° with one result. Exhibit A: today’s headlines on ‘Pool’s win in the CL compared with those about its crisis in the preceding days.
Ned @27, as to being a curmudgeon, if not now, when?
Palace slipped to a very surprising 1-0 defeat at home to AEK Larnaca from Cyprus, not even Cyprus’s best team . They also played a surprisingly strong team. Guehi, Mateta and Sarr started .
With us up on Sunday I expected more rotation.Tricky thing this European football!
Yes, that was an odd result for Palace. Let’s hope for more of the same on Sunday.
I suppose they did better poor Aberdeen who got tanked 6-0 by AEK Athens 😱
It’s sad to see just how ooor Scottish club football has become especially given tgat tye national team are starting to improve . Rangers look a disaster zone and tgat was an awful result for Aberdeen
The decline of Scottish football has broken my heart. That was a truly awful performance by Aberdeen, beginning with the selection of a midfield pair with a combined age of 67, expected to cover the breadth of the pitch between two wing backs in front of a clown-like defence that made Mustafi and Sokratis look like the Tower of London. The attack was toothless.
TTG @32, you clearly did not watch the last two Scotland games. While the results on paper look respectable wins (only if you ignore the closeness of the result against hapless Belarus), the performances were truly execrable and both recent wins were utterly undeserved. Should they by some miracle qualify for the World Cup Finals in the USA, by winning a play-off, which is unlikely (Denmark will win the group by wiping the floor with them in the final group match at Hampden after the Greeks exact revenge for their astonishing defeat there last week) they will certainly stink the place out.
National delusions need to be binned.
With absolutely no right to comment on Scotland other than being reasonably aware of their results, I would say if they need to change something that Steve Clarke woukd be a reasonable place to start. In his recent press conferences – pre and post match – he presents the most miserable, uninspiring persona imaginable. I’ll wait for those better informed to disagree – just my strong impression.
Bath
I only watched the highlights of both matches and from that perspective I was pleased to see them win but aware they squeaked through. The decline from a time when they produced some of the best players in the world is quite alarming
Trev @34 & TTG I @35, Clarke is a typically dour Scotsman and seems to relish portraying that image to the media but in my opinion he has worked wonders with the players at his disposal and will, in the fullness of time, be hailed for his achievements. When compared with the catalogue of disasters who have filled that role since Craig Brown, he is a colossus. I dread to think who will succeed him.
The problem is the lack of talented young players coming through which has been getting worse since the 90’s. I don’t know whether this is due to prevailing youth culture, poor youth training school/club structures or the rise of alternative pastimes, the dearth of talent stands in stark contrast to the decades from 1960 to 1990. A solution is not obvious.
Bath @36 – interesting, thanks – hence my caution 👍🏻
Nice piece on Max Dowman by Amy Lawrence
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6744503/2025/10/23/max-dowman-arsenal-contract-analysis/
Eze is a chess champion. Who knew?
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6743316/2025/10/24/eberechi-eze-arsenal-crystal-palace-chess/
C100 – thanks but unfortunately can’t see them. I cancelled my subscription – too much stuff I had no interest in
Thanks for the links, C100. I enjoyed Amy Lawrence’s piece on bringing up Dowman. It throws light on a whole other side of football management.
A data point on Scotland’s shortcomings in raising good young players: there were 40 Scots in the squads of Premier League clubs in the league’s debut season, 1992-93. This season, there are nine. That is one fewer than Welsh players, even though Wales’s male population is only 58% of Scotland’s, and two fewer than the number of Northern Ireland players in 1992-93.
C100@39
I learnt about Eberechi’s chess prowess when he signed for us . I also learnt his wife is a sister in an intensive care ward at a London hospital. He is not a stereotypical footballer
Interesting he went to John Roan in Greenwich. We used to play them and they were regarded as one of the weaker school football teams we played . I think the school was close to the Cutty Sark from memory
Here’s a counterpoint to the Dowman link from half a century ago.
Cheers Ned – fun and joy were in short supply in those days. Shankly even made the lad’s first contract sound like a sentence.
That was grim viewing, wasn’t it? I guess that must be early 70’s.
Ned @43, thanks for digging that up. A most enjoyable watch – those were the days! It provides aAn interesting insight into the culture of a top football club in the seventies and the likely basis for that club’s subsequent success. It demonstrates well the culture in which Gorgeous George and Alex Ferguson (and many others) learnt their management style. I doubt that the trainees of today would flourish under such a regime but MA8’s non-negotiables have a similar objective though are doubtless phrased somewhat less confrontationally. Unsurprisingly none of the trainees featured became household names.
>>>>>>>