Arsenal have apologised to Atletico Madrid after failing to provide hot water at the Emirates Stadium for players to use in post-training showers.
Cadena SER journalist Pedro Fullana broke the news on Monday evening that the Atletico Madrid squad had to leave the Emirates Stadium without showering, due to a lack of hot water.
In UEFA competition, the away side is allowed to train at the opposition stadium the day before a game, which is why Atletico held their training session at the Emirates on Monday.
But a hot water failure meant the squad had to return to their hotel without taking a shower first, and Fullana reported that there was “monumental anger” among the travelling party.
Charles Watts reports that Atletico reported the hot water issue at around 18:45, and Arsenal managed to fix the problem by 19:25, which was five minutes before Atletico’s session was due to end.
But by that point, the squad had already left the ground early and returned to their hotel.
Arsenal have reportedly submitted an apology to Atletico’s staff, but the away side have filed an official complaint to UEFA anyway.
The incident certainly adds a bit of spice to proceedings ahead of the Champions League match between the two on Tuesday night.
Arsenal are looking to keep their 100% record going after wins over Athletic Club and Olympiacos, but Atletico know they can leapfrog the Gunners in the table with a win of their own.