Arsenal Apologise to Atletico Madrid Over Hot Water Glitch at Emirates

According to reports, Atletico players were left without access to hot showers after their Monday evening training session at the Emirates. Under UEFA rules, visiting teams are allowed to train at the host stadium the day before a Champions League match an important part of their preparation.

However, things didn’t go as planned for Diego Simeone’s men. After taking to the pitch to fine-tune tactics for Tuesday’s group-stage showdown, the Atletico squad were forced to cut their session short and return to their hotel when they discovered the dressing room had no hot water.

The team were originally scheduled to finish training at 19:30 but wrapped up 15 minutes early due to the issue. Spanish outlet Marca reported that the players were “angry” about the inconvenience.

Arsenal acted swiftly, offering a formal apology to Atletico staff. The issue was resolved shortly afterward, at approximately 19:25.

Despite the hiccup off the pitch, both teams came into the match with strong momentum. Mikel Arteta’s side had won their opening two group games without conceding a goal, while Atletico bounced back from a narrow 3-2 loss at Liverpool with a dominant 5-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Speaking ahead of the match, Arteta showed respect for his opposite number, praising Simeone’s trademark intensity and tactical discipline.

“First of all, with Simeone’s team, it is the willingness to win. You can sense that in every single ball, in every single yard, the way that they play. It’s about how they compete, and then how they play. They are two very different things,” Arteta said.

“The levels of organisation and discipline are really high, and they’ve acquired a lot of talent over the years that’s specific to the way they want to play. They’re very good at exploiting those opportunities.”

While the hot water mishap may have stirred some early tension, all eyes are now back on the pitch where the real heat belongs.

Source: Punch

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