Ahead of the game, Los Rojiblancos knew that they had nothing else to play for this season, having recently lost the Copa del Rey final to Real Sociedad.
The Gunners received an unexpected Premier League bonus 24 hours before facing the Spaniards after Man City were held by Everton, meaning that if the Gunners were to win their remaining league games, they would be champions for the first time in 22 years.
Landing a place in the final of the premier European competition would almost certainly work wonders for morale, too, and given that Mikel Arteta's side had already wiped the floor with Atleti in the league stage of the competition this season, scoring four without reply in fourteen second-half minutes, everything was set up nicely in North London.
Of course, Diego Simeone and his squad revel in being the party poopers, and that was the last UCL game in which Atleti didn't score, so there was some certainty that the hosts weren't going to get things all their own way.
Five changes from Arteta from the team that faced Atleti a few days ago may have been a surprise to supporters, with Riccardo Calafiori, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, and Leandro Trossard replacing Martín Zubimendi, Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard, Piero Hincapie, and Noni Madueke.
Early dominance from the Gunners
The Gunners took the initiative from the first whistle, moving the ball around well and having 80% collective possession to leave the Spaniards chasing shadows.
Despite their dominance of the ball, a swift break from the visitors almost brought the opener, with the first chance of any note coming from Julian Alvarez, who shot just wide.
A back five from Atleti with less than 10 minutes on the clock notified everyone in the stadium of their intentions, so Calafiori's wild effort from distance was hardly unexpected.
Alvarez came even closer shortly afterwards, and only a last-ditch tackle from Declan Rice - the first of the game from any Arsenal player - kept the game goalless.
With 15 minutes gone, the pattern was already well set. The hosts were as happy to stay on the front foot as the visitors were to sit back and play on the counter.
Koke in the mood for Atleti
Arsenal's passing was crisp and clean, with William Saliba, Viktor Gyokeres and Eze all posting 100% pass completion after a quarter of the game had elapsed.
They were, however, getting outmuscled in midfield, with veteran Atleti ace Koke winning three of his four early one-on-one duels.
His and Marcos Llorente's energy for the mattress makers was a real feature of the first half, though their output was matched by Calafiori, who won all of his ground and aerial duels, as well as winning back possession on two separate occasions, and completing 10 of his 12 passes.
Oblak spills and Saka steals in
Far from being a rip-roaring semi-final, the game had become a high-stakes chess match well before half-time, with neither side having an attempt on target in the first 40 minutes.
Antoine Griezmann, lauded for his skill and invention in attack, had attempted four tackles during that time, more than any other player, underscoring the work ethic that Simeone demands.
Any time that Arsenal did edge ahead of Atleti's back four, there always seemed to be a player back to head off any danger.
Right on half-time, however, Jan Oblak's inability to hold onto Leandro Trossard's cross shot fell right at the feet of Saka, who made no mistake with the first goal from the first shot on target in the game, to hand Arsenal the advantage in the tie.
A 14th goal contribution in his last 14 UCL games was no more than he or Arsenal deserved, and it would almost certainly change the complexion of the second half as Atleti would have to come out and play if they wanted to get anything out of the game.
Gabriel saves Saliba's blushes
This they did and had a half chance in the first 40 seconds after the break, whilst a Marc Pubill run just after was left unchecked as Atleti threatened.
A poor headed back pass from Saliba left David Raya in no man's land, but with the goal gaping, Gabriel got back for a vital block on Giuliano Simeone.
Wave after wave of Atleti attacks saw a hush descend on the Emirates Stadium, with the visitors moving the ball more quickly and looking to hem the Gunners into their own half.
Rice's breakout from one end to the other was a brief respite, and it preceded a triple substitution from both sides just before the hour mark.
A much more open game made for a more exciting spectacle, though Arteta surely won't have been happy that his entire back four had only been able to successfully make one solitary tackle between them to that point.
Gyokeres almost made that incidental when he connected with Piero Hincapie's brilliant cross, but his glaring miss kept Atleti in the tie.
Trossard's best performance for a while saw him winning back possession on nine separate occasions, more than any other player, and his four successful duels from seven attempted were one of a few reasons why the Rojiblancos weren't getting any change out of the Gunners.
By contrast, fellow sub, Noni Madueke got no joy whatsoever down the Atleti left side.
The former Chelsea man had at least completed all of his passes, but he'd offered nothing as an attacking threat, and he felt the wrath of the Emirates when pulling out of a challenge late on.
Party time at the Emirates
Things got ever more desperate for the visitors, though with five minutes left, they'd still had only two on-target efforts to show for their endeavours. Alexander Sorloth getting his feet tangled up with only Raya to beat seemed to sum up their night.
When official Daniel Siebert blew up for full-time, to signal a party atmosphere inside the stadium, not only was it Atleti's third game without a win in a row in the competition, but also signified a ninth clean sheet in 14 UCL games for Arsenal.
Could the final, therefore, be a case of the unstoppable force against the immovable object?
