Bukayo Saka became the savior as the Gunners earned a place in the UCL final by scraping through with a 1-0 win over Atlético Madrid in the second leg, winning 2-1 on aggregate.
Emirates Stadium was a sea of fans, but in fact it was the visitors who had the first major opportunity as Julián Álvarez’s shot went wide. In a moment of intense drama for Arsenal, Giuliano Simeone had his goal-bound effort blocked by Declan Rice, who was on hand with a brilliant clearance.
After the opening spells of play, Arsenal seemed to find their rhythm and were able to bring out talents such as Gabriel Magalhães and Myles Lewis-Skelly to create some good chances as well. It was their hard work that eventually bore fruit as Saka was the fastest to the loose ball after Jan Oblak had made a save from Leandro Trossard and reacted superbly to slot the ball home.
Griezmann’s shot was saved while Sørloth’s miss was just one of the several chances that put an end to Atlético’s hopes on a frustrating night for the Spanish side.
Under Mikel Arteta, Arsenal are still going strong in this year’s tournament without a single loss and will be drawn against either Paris Saint-Germain or Bayern Munich at the final, which is scheduled for May 30.
