Arsenal Vs Atletico Madrid: The same old Achilles heel

Arsenal will take on Atletico Madrid on Thursday night in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final tie. For the Gunners, they must deal with the same old Achilles heel: The counter attack.

The biggest game of the season is upon us. Arsenal host Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final on Thursday night. It is a game, allied with the second leg, that the Gunners must win.

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Given their position in the Premier League, the Europa League is now the only remaining chance of a trophy and qualifying for next season’s Champions League. And so, this is as must-win as it gets.

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There is one key aspect that is especially concerning for me in regards to the way two teams like to play: Atletico’s counter-attack. The further explain what I mean, here is La Liga pundit Terry Gibson on the Sky Sports’ La Liga Podcast talking about the threat that the Spaniard’s will present on the break:

"“That will be the same Atletico we see on Thursday but, of course, they have the quality and swift counter-attacking play to hurt Arsenal – Kevin Gameiro was on the bench as well last night which suggests he might play alongside Antoine Griezmann. Arsenal will have to be aware of not giving the ball away cheaply due to the threat of Atletico Madrid; when they win the ball back quickly with the pace they’ve got in attack. So I wouldn’t throw everything at it if I was Arsenal because Atletico are more than capable of picking them off and getting an away goal.”"

And not only is this a key strength of Atletico’s game, but it has been a key issue for the Gunners for many years also. Arsene Wenger does not drill a disciplined and regimented defence. He rarely plays a midfield of balance, often exposing the team to quick-strike counters from the opposition.

This is the perfect Achilles heel for Atletico. Although Shkodran Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny are a speedy pair of centre-halves, they are a little aggressive in their decision-making, meaning that they can be eased out of the play, rolled off the ball, and the space behind them exploited.

Additionally, Nacho Monreal is not the quickest, Hector Bellerin can be caught out, and Granit Xhaka, as the deepest-lying midfielder, certainly struggles to cover the vast spaces that open up when the opposition is allowed to counter with pace, as Atletico will certainly look to do.

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This, for me, is the most concerning element of this game. I feel that the Gunners can repel Atletico when they build up slowly and ponderously. But when they counter with speed and precision, it is a very different question. It has been a weakness of this team for many years. I hope that it doesn’t show up again on Thursday.