Arsenal set for toughest test as similar Atletico Madrid present significant step up | OneFootball

LaLiga giants are one of the few sides in Europe who can play the streetwise Gunners at their own game

Your matchday briefing on Arsenal, featuring team news and expert analysis from Simon Collings

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Mikel Arteta was analysing the Atletico Madrid side Arsenal will face on Tuesday night, but he could easily have been describing his own team.

But Tuesday’s showdown with Atletico Madrid could prove to be their toughest test yet, primarily because of the similarities between the two teams.

Few sides in world football can match Arsenal’s defensive steel and physical edge, but Atletico are one of them.

This game may not be one for the purists - unlike Barcelona against Paris Saint-Germain in the last round of Champions League fixtures - however, it will be fiercely competitive.

This game may not be one for the purists, but it will be fiercely competitive

Atletico have established themselves as a team that relishes a battle under Diego Simeone and they would love nothing more than to beat Arsenal in their own back yard.

“They have two very big clubs [in Spain], but they [Atletico] have always been there,” said Arteta. “That is something driven by their mentality and their passion, and after that specifically the way he [Simeone] sees the game and he tries to encourage his teams to play.

“The way they live, the way they behave, the way they act in everything and they have a purpose to win - and they find a way to do that.”

The similarities between the teams extend to the dugout. Both managers have built clubs in their own image, with Simeone the second-longest-serving coach in Europe’s top five leagues and Arteta the fourth.

Simeone is approaching 14 years at Atletico, while Arteta will celebrate his sixth anniversary at Arsenal in December.

When Arteta was hired in 2019, the perception was that Arsenal were getting a disciple of Pep Guardiola.

There are undoubtedly shades of Guardiola and Arteta’s upbringing at Barcelona’s famed La Masia in this Arsenal side - but you can see echoes of Simeone, too.

Arsenal have shed their old reputation for softness and become one of Europe’s most streetwise sides.

Rock solid: William Saliba and Gabriel have helped Arsenal’s defence to become one of the most miserly in Europe

Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Defensively, they are the best in Europe and in 11 games this season they have conceded just three goals.

The only player to score from open play against them is Manchester City striker Erling Haaland.

There are even some similarities with the passion shown by Arteta and Simeone on the touchline.

Simeone is back in England for the first time since he was embroiled in an argument with Liverpool fans after Atletico’s dramatic 3-2 defeat at Anfield last month.

“We are there living it with high emotions and it is difficult to control,” said Arteta. “We get really emotional and we start to run with our players and celebrating goals.

“It is something natural and it has to be understood in a respectful way. From my experience over the years, I try to be a little bit calm but there are moments when it is not easy.”

There could well be a few of those moments on Tuesday night. On paper, this is Arsenal’s toughest test in the league phase of the Champions League.

They’ve made the perfect start, beating Athletic Club and Olympiacos, but Atletico represent a significant step up.