Arsenal dumped holders Real Madrid out of the Champions League as a stunning 2-1 win at the Bernabeu sealed a 5-1 aggregate victory to set up a semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain.
Led by the talismanic Bukayo Saka – who dinked a superb finish over Thibaut Courtois in the second half, having earlier had a Panenka penalty saved by the goalkeeper – Arsenal quashed all the talk of a Real Madrid comeback following their three-goal first-leg win.
The hosts were given a lifeline as William Saliba was caught on the ball by Vinicius Jr shortly after Saka’s goal, allowing the Real Madrid forward to equalise, but Arsenal maintained their composure before Gabriel Martinelli added a breakaway winner in stoppage time.
The victory ranks as one of the club’s greatest in Europe and puts them into the last four of the competition for the first time since 2009 and only the third time in their history.
In truth, such an outcome never looked in any real jeopardy thanks to a composed performance which left Real Madrid, 15-time winners of the competition and masters of historic comebacks, deeply frustrated as they struggled to carve out chances against Arsenal’s organised defence.
Arsenal did have to come through moments of adversity, with Saka’s early penalty miss giving the hosts a psychological boost. Real Madrid then had a penalty of their own overturned following a five-minute VAR check later in the second half, after Declan Rice was wrongly adjudged to have fouled Kylian Mbappe.
The home fans sensed the possibility of another epic ‘remontada’ when Saliba’s error led to their instant equaliser after Saka’s beautifully-worked opener, but their hope was short-lived as Arsenal reasserted their superiority.
Overall, they were the more threatening of the two teams, with Saka and Martinelli outshining Mbappe and Vinicius Jr in attack, Rice dominating the midfield, and Saliba and Jakub Kiwior excelling defensively, save for Saliba’s error for Real Madrid’s goal.
Martinelli’s late strike, slotted home with a level of composure typical of Arsenal’s performance, following a superb counter-attack started by David Raya, gave them a deserved victory on the night, ensuring they can continue to dream of lifting the trophy.
WATCH: Bothroyd’s reactions on Soccer Special
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Jay Bothroyd reacts to Bukayo Saka’s incredible Panenka penalty miss
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Bothroyd gives his view on Real Madrid’s penalty overturned by VAR
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Jay Bothroyd breaks down Bukayo Saka’s calm finish for Arsenal’s first goal
Rice: We knew we would win
Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice speaking to TNT Sport:
“It’s such a special night, a historic one for the club. We have the objective of playing the best and winning the competition.
“We had so much belief and confidence from that first leg and came here to win the game. We knew we were going to suffer but we knew we were going to win. We had it in our minds, then we did it real life. What a night.
“I knew when I signed this club was on an upward trajectory. It’s been tough in the Premier League but in this competition we’ve done amazingly well.
“This club is going to do some special things over the next few years – we have trust in this manager and we’ve got played like [Myles] Lewis-Skelly coming through. It’s a great mix. It’s PSG next who are an amazing team.”
