Despite playing a man less owing to the 10th-minute red card given to Sime Vrsaljko, Atletico Madrid on Thursday night forced Arsenal to a 1-1 draw in their Europa League first leg semifinal clash at the Emirates.
After a barren first half, the Gunners got in front just after the hour-mark courtesy of a goal from Alexandre Lacazette.
While the slim lead was far from good enough for the Gunners, the advantage was short-lived as Antoine Griezmann got an 82nd-minute equaliser for Atletico.
Arsenal attempted to rally late on with Aaron Ramsey seeing a header superbly clawed away from goal by Oblak, but the English outfit could not force a winner and must find a goal in Spain next week to maintain hope of reaching the final
With the development, Arsenal have a tough task ahead of them in the second leg.
Nigeria international, Alex Iwobi, did not feature for Arsenal in Thursday’s game.
Meanwhile, at the Stade Velodrome, Olympique Marseille got a crucial 2-0 win over Salzburg in the other Europa League first leg semifinal clash played on Thursday.
