Diego Simeone was involved in a heated touchline confrontation with former Atletico Madrid sporting director Andrea Berta following Atletico’s UEFA Champions League semi-final defeat to Arsenal.
As reported by İdman.Biz, citing Marca, the incident took place deep into stoppage time during Tuesday night’s second leg in London.
In the 95th minute, Berta, who now works within Arsenal’s football structure, reportedly ran towards the touchline and gestured towards the referee to blow for full-time as the Premier League side closed in on qualification for the final.
The behaviour appeared to anger Simeone, who confronted the Italian executive and pushed him before members of both clubs intervened to prevent the situation from escalating further.
Berta, 54, spent more than a decade at Atletico Madrid between 2013 and 2025 and was widely regarded as one of Simeone’s closest allies during the club’s most successful modern era. Together, they helped Atletico win major domestic and European honours while establishing the club as a consistent challenger to Real Madrid and FC Barcelona.
The tense exchange came moments before Arsenal sealed a 1-0 victory on the night and progressed to the Champions League final with a 2-1 aggregate win. The first leg in Madrid had ended in a 1-1 draw.
Arsenal will now prepare for their first Champions League final appearance since 2006, while Atletico’s wait for a first European Cup triumph continues.
