Arsenal have issued an apology to Atletico Madrid after a hot water failure at the Emirates Stadium disrupted the Spanish club’s pre-match preparations ahead of their UEFA Champions League fixture on Tuesday night.
Diego Simeone’s side were conducting their mandatory pre-match training session a right guaranteed under UEFA regulations when Atletico staff reported at around 18:45 BST that there was no hot water available in the visitors’ dressing room. Arsenal officials soon discovered the same issue affected the home facilities as well.
Atletico were scheduled to train until 19:30, but the session ended 15 minutes early after the players decided to return to their team hotel to shower. Spanish outlet Marca reported that the squad was “angry” with the situation, viewing it as an unexpected inconvenience before a crucial Champions League group-stage tie.
Arsenal later apologised to Atletico Madrid staff for the disruption, citing the problem as a technical malfunction rather than a deliberate oversight.
Mikel Arteta’s men enter the match in strong form, having won their first two Champions League games without conceding a goal. Atletico, meanwhile, are looking to build on their recent 5-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt, following a narrow 3-2 defeat to Liverpool in their opening fixture.
UEFA has not commented on the incident, though no disciplinary action is expected as the issue was resolved promptly and did not violate competition regulations.
By Michelle Ndaga
