A dramatic intervention by the video assistant referee deep in stoppage time denied Arsenal what would have been a decisive penalty at the Metropolitano, leaving their Champions League semi-final against Atlético Madrid delicately balanced at 1-1. The Dutch official Danny Makkelie had initially pointed to the spot after Atlético defender David Hancko trod on an Arsenal attacker’s foot, only to overturn his decision following a prolonged VAR review. The incident capped a fractious evening in which both goals came from penalties, and it will fuel familiar debates about the technology’s inconsistent application.

From the German press, where the match was depicted as a spectacle of spot-kick chaos, the focus falls on how two correctly awarded penalties were followed by a third that was, in their reading, mysteriously rescinded. Spanish analysts, meanwhile, frame the result as a missed opportunity for the home side. Atlético dominated the second half after falling behind to Viktor Gyökeres’s 44th-minute strike, a surge that produced Julián Álvarez’s equaliser from the penalty spot on 56 minutes and a thunderous Antoine Griezmann drive that clipped the crossbar.

The Colchoneros’ intensity forced Arsenal deep into their own half, yet the visitors, unbeaten in this season’s competition, absorbed the pressure with the resilience that has become their hallmark. The narrative is complicated, however, by a worrying injury to Álvarez. The Argentine forward, who had been Atlético’s most incisive attacker, signalled to the bench midway through the second half and limped off with an ankle problem.

Italian and Argentine outlets alike underscore how his fitness will dominate preparations for the return leg. Viewed from London, Arsenal’s performance was a study in controlled suffering: they created little after the break but retained the shape and discipline that makes them difficult to break down. Their reward is a home decider at the Emirates, where the absence of a second away goal may yet be felt.

For Atlético, the equation is simpler: win in London, or score at least twice in a fixture where their high-octane second-half display suggests they are capable of troubling any defence. But if Álvarez is absent, the burden falls on Griezmann, and the margins in these tight, tactical contests leave little room for regret.