Arsenal are one step away from the Champions League semi-finals. In the first leg of the quarter-finals, they crushed Real Madrid 3-0, and Declan Rice’s goals were the real highlights of the match. In Spain, they write openly about Mikel Arteta’s success, and the hosts’ coach revealed what he did after the match. He called one of the most important people in his life.
“It’s hard to find a more demanding challenge for a defender in modern football than competing with Real Madrid led by Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior. Jakub Kiwior took on the task of stopping the great stars, but in the first clash at Emirates Stadium in the Champions League quarter-finals, Declan Rice shone the brightest. The central midfielder did something extraordinary, scoring two goals directly from a free kick, and Mikel Merino finished off the completely paralyzed “Royal” team. Arsenal will go to the return match in Madrid with an advance they had not even dreamed of,” wrote Sport.pl journalist Filip Modrzejewski .
Arteta revealed. He did it after beating Real Madrid
Arsenal set the bar extremely high for Real ahead of the return match, which will take place on 16 April at the Santiago Bernabeu, and won a great victory themselves. Perhaps the biggest in the Champions League since 2011, when they won the first match against Barcelona 2-1 in the 1/8 finals. Barcelona, who went on to win the title.
The fans from north London would not like a repeat of the game and are counting on their favourites to take the second step in the fight for the Champions League semi-final next week. It would be Arsenal’s first semi-final in this competition since the 2008/09 season, when Manchester United stood in their way to the final.
Will Mikel Arteta beat the achievement of the club’s then manager Arsene Wenger? His peak was the 2006 Finn. In the homeland of the current coach of the team from Emirates Stadium, there is no doubt that this was a victory that “kicked down the door” – this is how the Madrid daily “AS” writes about Tuesday’s triumph, drawing attention to another important aspect.
“Almost six years after his arrival, Arteta had his most magical night as manager of the Gunners against Real Madrid. He admitted that he called Pep Guardiola: “I wanted to talk to him,” the source said.