Arsenal forwardGabriel Martinelli says there is ‘trust’ within the squad that they can beatAtletico Madrid and progress to the final of theChampions League for the first time since 2006.
Penalties from Viktor Gyokeres and Julian Alvarez at the Estadio Metropolitano ensured that the scoreline remained level ahead of next Tuesday’s second leg in North London.
Martinelli, who was on the scoresheet in Arsenal’s 4-0 win over Atletico back in October, admitted that the team knew exactly what to expect from Diego Simeone’s side following their emphatic win over Barcelona in the quarter-final.
“We knew when they went through it was going to be a big one, a battle over there, it was a really hard game, they've got a really good side and of course we wanted to come here and win the game,” he said after the game.
“We take the draw, playing away from home, we have a big one next week in our place, so we go for it.”
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Asked if he would have taken the result before kick-off, the Brazil international replied: “No, I wouldn't take it before the kick-off. We wanted to come here and win the game, but the atmosphere was great, the game was a battle over there, so we did our best. As I said, of course we could have done things better.”
The 24-year-old was confident that the result has placed them in good stead to book their ticket to Budapest next week.
“Yes, of course, we play for Arsenal, we know how big the club is and we trust in ourselves,” he responded to whether they are confident of reaching the final.