Arsene Wenger's hopes of ending his reign as Arsenal manager by winning the Europa League have been left in the balance after Antoine Griezmann earned a semi-final first-leg draw for 10-man Atletico Madrid at the Emirates.
Atleti, reduced to 10 men after just 10 minutes following two bookable offences by Sime Vrasljko, spent the majority of this tie on the back foot, with Arsenal creating a series of chances to kill the tie and book a place in next month's final in Lyon.
But with just eight minutes left to play, Griezmann cancelled out Alexandre Lacazette's headed opener with a breakaway goal following typically bad defending by the home side.
With Arsenal pushing forward for a second, Griezman beat Laurent Koscielny to the ball and then scored from close range, with Shkodran Mustafi slipping at the crucial moment as the French forward shot at goal.
Arsenal must now score in Spain next week to have any hope of avoiding elimination on the away goals rule, but Wenger's players only have themselves to blame for the situation they now find themselves in ahead of the second leg.
The absence of the cup-tied Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang told for Arsenal, with Lacazette, Danny Welbeck and Nacho Monreal all missing clear chances and Atleti goalkeeper Jan Oblak also producing at least two crucial saves.
Lacazette's goal on 61 minutes gave Arsenal the breakthrough and opened up the prospect of further damage against a tiring Atleti, who also had coach Diego Simeone sent to the stands early in the first half.
But with their defensive frailties never far away, Arsenal gifted Atletico an equaliser and now face a daunting challenge in the brand-new Wanda Metropolitano.
Arsenal are still the only the club in English football not to secure a point away from home in 2018, but they must buck that trend by getting something from their trip to Madrid next week.
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