Champions League semi-final second leg: Arsenal vs Atlético de Madrid facts

There is nothing between Arsenal and Atlético de Madrid and as they meet in north London for the second time this season to conclude their UEFA Champions League semi-final.

The English side struck first in the first leg at the Estadio Metropolitano on 29 April, Viktor Gyökeres converting a 44th-minute penalty – the first Swede to score in a Champions League semi-final – and Atleti's Julián Alvarez levelling with a spot kick of his own four minutes before the hour.

Arsenal won all eight games in the league phase – the first time that had been achieved in the new Champions League format – and have since eliminated Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 on aggregate (1-1 a, 2-0 h) and Sporting CP (1-0 a, 0-0 h) in the round of 16 and quarter-finals respectively.

Atleti were beaten 4-0 at the Arsenal Stadium on Matchday 3 but recovered to finish 14th in the league phase before defeating Club Brugge 7-4 on aggregate in the knockout phase play-offs (3-3 a, 4-1 h), Tottenham Hotspur 7-5 in the round of 16 (5-2 h, 2-3 a) and Barcelona 3-2 in an all-Spanish quarter-final (2-0 a, 1-2 h).

Last match

This is the teams' fifth meeting and third in 2025/26. Second-half goals from Gabriel (57), Gabriel Martinelli (64) and Viktor Gyökeres (67 70) gave Arsenal a 4-0 victory in north London on 21 October.

The teams' only fixtures before this season came in the 2017/18 UEFA Europa League semi-finals, a 1-1 draw in London in which Antoine Griezmann scored a late equaliser followed by a 1-0 home win for Atleti on their way to lifting the trophy.

The Matchday 3 win against Atleti was Arsenal's seventh successive Champions League victory against Spanish opposition – a European Cup first for any club.

The Gunners are unbeaten in nine games against Spanish opposition (W7 D2).

Arsenal have lost only one of their last 15 home matches against Spanish clubs (W9 D5), winning the last three without conceding.

The London club have won five of their nine Champions League knockout ties against Liga opposition. This is their second semi-final against a Spanish club having beaten Villarreal 1-0 on aggregate in 2005/06 (1-0 h, 0-0 a) – their only previous victory at this stage.

Atleti have won only two of their last 13 matches against English teams (D3 L8), losing the last four away.

This season's round of 16 victory against Tottenham was Atleti's 11th in their 15 two-legged ties against English teams.

Atleti have also won all three European semi-finals against Premier League opponents, beating Liverpool on away goals in the 2009/10 Europa League (1-0 h, 1-2 a aet) and Chelsea 3-1 on aggregate in the 2013/14 Champions League (0-0 h, 3-1 a) before defeating Arsenal in the 2017/18 Europa League.

Arsenal

Having not featured in the Champions League proper between 2016/17 and 2023/24, Arsenal are making their third successive appearance.

The Gunners reached the semi-finals last season – their best run in the competition since 2008/09 – before a 1-3 aggregate defeat by eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain (0-1 h, 1-2 a).

Atlético de Madrid

Atleti are making their 16th appearance in the Champions League proper and a 13th in succession. They have featured every season since 2013/14.

Runners-up in 2014 and 2016, both against Real Madrid, Diego Simeone's side lost to their neighbours on penalties in last season's round of 16 (1-2 a, 1-0 h, 2-4 pens).

Key stats

Arsenal have reached the Champions League semi finals in successive seasons for the first time in their history.

This is the Gunners' fourth Champions League semi-final; they beat Villarreal in 2005/06 but have lost the last two, against Manchester United in 2008/09 (0-1 a, 1-3 h) and Paris last season.

Mikel Arteta's side have won five of their last seven two-legged Champions League ties.

Arsenal have lost only two of their last 23 Champions League matches (W17 D4) and are unbeaten in this season's competition (W10 D3), keeping eight clean sheets.

This season has equalled Arsenal's longest European Cup sequence without defeat, matching the 13-match unbeaten run from 9 March 2005 to 25 April 2006.

Arsenal have lost only one of their last 24 home European games (W17 D6); this season their record is W5 D1.

The Premier League side have kept 17 clean sheets in their last 23 home European matches and have conceded only six goals overall in this season's Champions League – the best defensive record in the competition.

Arsenal have won six of the nine previous European ties in which they drew the away first leg.

Atleti are in their seventh European Cup semi-final; their record is W3 L3.

This is Atleti's first Champions League semi-final since 2016/17, when they lost 4-2 on aggregate to Real Madrid (0-3 a, 2-1 h); their last success at this stage came in 2015/16, on away goals against Bayern München (1-0 h, 1-2 a).

Atleti have won six of their last seven European semi-finals, most recently against Arsenal in the 2017/18 Europa League.

Atleti's 35 goals in this season's Champions League is their most in a single European Cup campaign, beating the previous best of 26 in 2013/14.

The Madrid club have won 15 of their last 21 two-legged European ties.

None of Atleti's last 37 European matches finished goalless.

Atleti have won six of the ten previous European ties in which they drew the home first leg.

Alvarez's first-leg goal made him the first Atleti player to score ten in a Champions League campaign. It was his 25th goal in the competition, in his 41st game, the fastest by an Argentinian player, surpassing Lionel Messi's 25 goals in 42 appearances.