The UEFA disciplinary board has fined Atletico Madrid and suspended fans following their match with Arsenal, levying two charges against the Spanish club.
Atletico Madrid have been hit with two fines and a one-match suspended ban for supporters following behaviour from the stands in their clash with Arsenal in the Champions League this season. The Spanish club were charged by the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body for racist and/or discriminatory behaviour, as well as the throwing of objects.
A statement from the CEDB reads that they have decided: “To fine Atletico de Madrid €30,000 (ÂŁ26,256) and to ban Atletico de Madrid from selling tickets to its away supporters for the next (1) UEFA competition match, for the racist and/or discriminatory behaviour of its supporters.
“Said ban from selling tickets to its away supporters is suspended for a probationary period of one (1) year, starting from the date of the present decision. To fine AtlĂ©tico de Madrid €10,000 (ÂŁ8,752) for throwing of objects.”
It came during Arsenal’s 4-0 thrashing of Atletico Madrid back in late October. A second-half demolition job saw the Gunners rip through the visitors at the Emirates Stadium, landing them another important victory over tough opposition.
A Viktor Gyokeres brace was joined by goals from Gabriel Magalhaes and Gabriel Martinelli, as Mikel Arteta masterminded another victory. That was all after some pre-match antics that seemed to make the visitors unhappy in the build-up to the big match at the Emirates Stadium.
Marca reported that a lack of hot water at the stadium meant Atletico Madrid were not able to have showers after their training session the night before, with the squad described as “angry” over the situation. Arsenal later apologised, noting that a similar issue had occurred in the home dressing room, but it couldn’t be resolved before the squad returned to their hotel for a shower.
Despite all of that talk, it was the action on the pitch that left Arteta extremely pleased with his side’s performance. He told the press: “I’m extremely happy and proud of the performance and the results against a really good side.
“I was very impressed when I analysed them and what I’ve seen today about them as well. So, I knew about the difficulty of it. It required a lot of aggression and a lot of patience as well, and the way they managed the context of the game and the way they can manipulate their behaviour was really impressive.
“With it being 0-0 at half-time, even though we generated two or three big chances, we had to stay patient, but at the same time, increase a little bit, set some areas to damage them more. We’ve done it, and then in this Champions League, I think we were very effective as well.”
While Arsenal reigned supreme during the match, it was the scenes in the stands from the visiting supporters that led to some unrest.
Reports of racist and/or discriminatory behaviour were made, along with the throwing of objects, leading to their fines and charge from the governing body.
Atletico Madrid fans now face a ban for their next UEFA match, should they re-offend in the next year, as it is a suspended sentence given against them.
Arsenal’s fine form in Europe, meanwhile, continued on Wednesday night as they put fellow Champions League contenders Bayern Munich to the sword, claiming a 3-1 win. The victory leaves Arteta’s men top of the table on 15 points and with the only flawless record in the competition after five matches.
Speaking after the huge win, Arteta said: “First of all, I have to praise our players because I think they had an incredible match against, in my opinion, the best team in Europe. Individually, we were immense to resolve all the challenges that this team brings to the table. They know how hard we work to prepare for every single game.
“We know that the margins are super small. We started the week really well against Spurs, winning here at home. Today is another massive victory, but that’s it. Now we go home, have a nice dinner and tomorrow morning we start to prepare for Stamford Bridge.”
