Arsenal 1-0 Atletico de Madrid
We have the first UEFA CL finalist, and it is Arsenal. I figured Arsenal would make it through, but I had to go through 97 minutes of bad football to see this happen. The game was slow, you could actually see what was going to happen next. Now I might be seeing this in the wrong manner but if a player has the ball in midfield and sends it back to the goalkeeper, just so the goalkeeper can kick the ball to two thirds of the field into the other team's camp, the only thing you have done is lose two or three seconds that coud have surprised the rival defense. Plus sending it all the way back to the goalkeeper also has a danger to it, an attacker can get ahold of that ball. And I think Arsenal and Atletico are the champions in doing this. I actually saw an arsenal player yelling at the guy who had the ball to send it back to the goalkeeper, I did not hear the yell but I did see him yelling and pointing with his finger.
OK, the game was exactly what I expected, two managers more intent on not letting the rival get a shot which is OK, until the rival does get a shot and scores a goal. Then you have to make substitutions to try and score. Why not do that from the start? The referee was OK, two maybe penalties one for each, and a few bad decisions which did not affect the game. What can affect a game were both teams make two shots at goal, Arsenal's goalkeeper made two saves, neither one spectacular and Atletico's saved one, the other was the goal? Now the goal was something, after the cross the Arsenal player actually was trying to think what to do eventually he did shoot at the goal, Oblak saved but Saka was there to kick the ball in. I really thought it was offside, but a lateral view shows it ok, until I saw another that again seems offside. I will go with the lineman and VAR saying it was good.
In the second half Atletico tried but could not get anything, the closest was Simeone giving hinself a pass over Raya only to miss the final kick. Arsenal had one good chance from a cross that the attacker, I think Gyokeres, missed the goal by a few inches. That should have been a goal.
OK, personally I think Arsenal did deserve to win, but they did not show much. This is not me making things up, Cholo's team is a master at defensive and obstructive play, sometimes it works out for him, today it didn't.
Tomorrow we have Bayern against PSG. The coin is in the air on this one, either side could win and I think it will be an offensive game both managers will probably go for the win. Now whoever wins this game will be the favorite in the final, but I think Arsenal do have a chance of winning, if only Arteta decides he wants his side to play offense. Suicide you would say, I really don't think so, you can't win if you park the bus and wait for a rival mistake, not if you face either Vitinha or Olise, you have to counter either of these two guys with offense, holding back gives them room to think, and that would be fatal.