Atletico Madrid have reportedly complained to UEFA after fireworks were set off outside their London hotel in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
The disruption came ahead of tonight’s UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg against Arsenal, following last week’s 1-1 draw in Spain.
According to Spanish outlet Marca (via football.london), Atletico “swiftly reported their displeasure at the situation to UEFA.”
It is further claimed that, despite the convenience of the hotel’s location in Shoreditch, there is concern that “the individuals who threw projectiles did not have any form of deterrent to approaching where the team were sleeping.”
The report from Marca also outlined the sequence of events, stating that “the first set of fireworks were set off at 1:30am.” Around 20 minutes later, “further loud noises arrived outside the team’s accommodation,” with “at least one member of the squad disrupted.”
Despite the disturbance, head coach Diego Simeone will take encouragement from the availability of several players.
Injury concerns had emerged over Julian Alvarez, Giuliano Simeone, Marcos Llorente and David Hancko in recent days, but all four have been named in the travelling squad.
Meanwhile, Pablo Barrios and Nico Gonzalez are the only notable absentees, while Alexander Sorloth has been included despite not featuring in the team’s last two matches.
