Morning all.
When last nights man of the match Declan Rice tore into Thomas Partey late in the game for picking up a stupid booking, it showed what this competition means to Arsenal. By that stage of course, there was no coming back for Real Madrid but already, Rice knew what impact the absence of our Ghanaian midfielder against PSG in the first of the two ties would mean to the team.
I’m never keen to highlight players when everyone has played so well but it would be remiss of me to not mention the maturity, talent and determination shown by Myles Lewis-Skelly yet again last night. He’s 18 years old yet plays like someone who has been in this game for years. He was immense last night and clearly cheesed off Rudiger who somehow got away with stamping on his stomach when he was on the ground.
A word for Jakub Kiwior too who was superb once more. Having been on the periphery of this team all season, he’s delivery two top class performances against Real Madrid.
Going into the game, all Arsenal had to do was hold tight and not concede more than two goals. Simple eh? Of course not, after all, we were facing the current European Champions on their own turf and they love a comeback.
Let’s be honest though, Ancelotti’s team never really looked like a team which was going to score one let alone the four needed to win the tie. The one they did score came about because of an error by William Saliba rather than a self generated moment of magic. Cross after cross into the box was their approach which might have worked had Erling Haaland or someone similar been in the box but each time the ball was crossed, an Arsenal player dealt with the threat with relative ease.
The first half talking points, other than Real’s rotational fouling, was about the referee’s award of two penalties.
The first came from a Declan Rice corner when Raul Asencio bundled Mikel Merino to the ground. Unlike in the Premier League, VAR spotted it and the game was stopped so that Francois Letexier could check the pitch-side monitor. The Frenchman pointed to the spot and booked Ascencio.
Martin Odegaard stepped up to take the resulting penalty before deciding to leave the job to Bukayo Saka. Our winger went for the spectacular, but Courtois saved it.
Five minutes later, Letexier pointed to the spot up the other end of the pitch when he believed Declan Rice was guilty of fouling Mbappe but after a lengthy review by VAR and a look at the pitch-side monitor, Letexier reversed his decision and yellow card he’d shown Rice was rescinded. Phew.
Mikel Arteta’s team went 1-0 up after the break. Bukayo Saka might not have got his penalty kick right but my goodness, he certainly got his chip over Courtois right the second time of trying. Martin Odegaard played the ball to Mikel Merino and played a lovely pass through to Saka and his finish was sheer brilliance.
No sooner had the Arsenal players finished celebrating, Real brought the score on the night level. William Saliba got caught in possession by Vinicius Jr before firing the ball into an empty net. The big comeback was on – not!
In the closing minutes of the game, Arsenal got what Arsenal deserved, victory on the night! Our winner came from a counter attack which saw Merino play the ball to Gabriel Martinelli. By this time in the game he must have been knackered but his run from the halfway line was worth it. His finish was sublime.
I’m so happy, I think it’s the third time in our history, so I have to be very proud to be there again. The team has shown incredible ambition, courage and willingness to compete against any opposition. It’s not only the fact that we are there, I think it’s the manner in which we’ve done it, both in London and here in Madrid, so I’m really proud of the players.
Pre-game, one word was coming out of Real Madrid – Remontada – Comeback!! Jude Bellingham said he must have heard the word a million times during the days before the game. Talking and actually doing proved to be two very different things.
I’m sure like most Arsenal fans, I expected Real Madrid to come out of the blocks fast and with intent and to a degree, they did. They didn’t cause Arsenal too many problems though, in fact I don’t think David Raya had to make a save in the first half because the players in front of him worked hard.
Our back line was brilliant, our midfield, excellent, our front players, busy, very busy. The only way Real could stop Bukayo Saka, Mikel Merino and Gabriel Martinelli was illegally. Asencio, Rudiger and Alaba were booked for the home team and ironically, Mbappe injured himself whilst fouling Declan Rice.
Over the two legs, Arsenal outfought, outthought, and outplayed one of the best football clubs in the world. A club steeped in history including this competition. A club which boasts having some of the best players and the most successful as well, yet it was the club with not only an injury hit squad but a squad which is yet to experience success together, who came out on top by a country mile.
I think it’s fair to say that it was Mikel Arteta who came out on top of the old and wise versus the young and improving manager contest too.
The only thing that we discussed over the last three days was that we’re coming here to win. It’s not only about going through, it’s in the manner that we have to do it in, because we are capable of doing it. Setting those demands and that mindset is very important for the team. I think it shows the capacity of the team, that against any opponent, when we are at our best, we can perform. Especially with adversity and a lot of players that are not even involved here. The way we are doing it, I think it’s special.
Mikel Arteta is right, beating Real Madrid 5-1 over two legs is very special. PSG stand between this journey being a little bit more special. The first leg takes place at The Emirates Stadium on the 29th April.
The next big match for Arsenal FC is on Saturday when Renee Slegers side take on Olympique Lyonnais at The Emirates Stadium in the first leg of the UEFA Women’s Champions League Semi Final.
Catch up in the comments….
It was Merino who played Saka in not Odegaard
Great description of a momentous night for the mighty Arsenal, Rico. Only blemish was Partey’s stupid yellow card which means a re-jig of our very effective midfield for the home leg v PSG. Re our pen I wonder if Odegaard was planning to take it or whether he was protecting Saka from being sledged by the RM players. Didn’t work in any case.
Thanks, I missed the hit after Odegaard which should have read ‘he played the ball to Merino…..”
Thanks Anthony, it was great wasn’t it.
Who knows re Odegaard but when he left it for Saka I was pleased. Until he hit it.
I wonder what the half-time fuss was about.
I thought Madrid were a dirty lot, thank goodness we had a strong referee. The Rudiger incident with MLS was not good.
Good morning Rico.
What a great result and what a great player Mikel Merino has turned out to be. Two assists and a penalty won, Mbappe should watch the video and learn how to do it properly 😉, his dual role in the side is vital now. A striker when we are in possession and a very good midfielder when we are not. He defends well and, as he showed last night, can pick out an excellent pass or two.
That Rudiger stamp on Lewis-Skelly was worthy of a straight red card. As far as I’m concerned that was the only blemish on an otherwise excellent referring performance.
Great report rico, last night (and last week) was our reward as often-suffering Arsenal fans! How VAR didn’t look at the Rudiger incident is amazing. MLS must be made of iron, and a run near the end, I was shouting don’t dribble into trouble, but he brushed them aside and strode up the field, what a player. Merino is confounding everyone, probably even himself.
Morning Rico,
Really enjoyed reading your report this morning.
They played so well and you could see that they were not going to let Real Madrid “heckle” them. Sadly Partey got hot headed but well done Rice for moving him away before it went too far.
Well done to Saka for making up his missed penalty and also to Martinelli for putting the game well and truly to bed.
I now firmly believe that they will get to the Final. They have beaten PSG in the past.
I think Calafiori will be back for the 28th April.
Have a great Easter everyone.
Excellent post Rico after an excellent result…
My overriding feelings after that historic game are that the officials showed admirable honesty, integrity and courage under huge pressure and some intimidation from a number of Madrid players, we wouldn’t have won without them. It is so unusual for us to experience such fair play and common sense from officials these days and their performance needs to be highlighted. It brings into stark focus what we experience domestically, I mean how many of the current mob in our own PGMOL would have been able to match that performance? None!
Can you imagine if we won the thing, I mean can you imagine?
North London would be like going to an all night rave with about 250,000 people.
It was hilarious that Mbappe twisted his ankle trying to tackle Declan Rice, not at all sure how bad the injury was but I think he was happy to get off the pitch before he and his team were completely humiliated by Arsenal.
Bellingham has a big mouth and talks the talk but last night just couldn’t walk the walk. Over rated? Has been for awhile actually.
Good Morning winners
A winning post Rico.
I am still speechless. Did not expect such a score overall. I enjoyed every moment. Especially seeing Merino get two assists himself. I guess he is even speechless himself at how he has taken the CF role like a duck to water. Nope….more like an alligator.
My only regret was not having Pa seeing it with me. but I guess he had better seating view. Together with gramps.
Morning Cicero, Andrew.
I’ve always liked Merino. After his injury he was on the end of a lot of criticism but not now. Chuffed to bits for him.
Morning Laura.
Agree re the officials Kevin, how refreshing it was to see the laws applied to both sides equally. Madrid tried the dirty stuff but the ref was having none of it. The only blip was the Rudiger on MLS stamp.
What I enjoyed too was the commentary team who I think were amazed by Arsenals football and brains.
Andrew, Merino does good stuff for Spain on a regular basis. Perhaps the freedom he has playing up front allows him to show his true colours.
Kiwior, what a game he had too, I’ve totally changed my mind about him. I thought he’d want to leave but perhaps now he’ll want to stay. Arteta certainly wouldn’t need to worry about rotating he and Gabriel more next season.
One thing which does irritate me about Arteta is that his hand needs to be forced into rotating. Had he trusted Kiwior earlier big Gabi might not have got injured.
I guess that next game we might see one of Zinchenko or MLS taking Partey’ place.
Speechless? You? Never in a million year Coach, never… 😆
Great point Rico regarding Kiwior, would love him to stay but the worst case scenario is that we’ll get a really good fee for him, maybe double what some clubs were offering?
It’s difficult not to praise a particular player and then find you end up praising all of them because they deserve it. Lewis Skelly is so intelligent, he just reads a situation and almost always seems to know the right thing to do. Nobody can buy a free kick like him he always seems to know when to earn the team a breather, he’s so brave and so smart. Some players can play well into their 30’s and be as thick as two planks, not Myles he has a football brain to treasure.
I know that Vinicius scored and what a good player he is but Timber pretty much had him in his pocket for most of the game.
Raya despite all the shenanigans around him brought a calmness to affairs with his no nonsense , no fuss approach and hands like magnets.
Merino is calmness personified, one of my few criticisms of Odegaard is his habit of misplacing simple passes after doing the difficult stuff, how often have we seen him wriggle through a forest of opponents and then give away sloppy possession, not so Merino, he just seems to have have gift of staying ice cool in stressful situations and making the perfectly weighted pass or accurate shot on goal.
Coach, I reckon we’ll see a lot of rotation at Portman Road, with maybe a debut for one of our youngsters in the offing?
Managing the squad has to be the prime job for Mikel now, we’re going to need all of our best players available for the semi-final at the end of the month. Three more wins should see us claim the runners up spot, but if we finish third does it really matter as long as our best players available are in Munich (🤞).
I guess that Tierney should play at LB. I still would try MLS in midfield Even for one half to see how it pans out
I’m not sure that Tierney can play at CL level anymore Coach, not from the start, but he’ll get a run out at Ipswich as will Zinchenko, we need them match sharp, we need all our players.
Let’s hope that Jorginho recovers, no mention yet of cracked or broken ribs so fingers crossed he’s ok?
Califiori will be fresh and a real asset during these final weeks of the season and I’m still hopeful that Havertz will rise again like Lazarus in the final weeks?
I was referring to the game at Ipswich Kev. I would love to see MLS tried out in Parteys role.
Tierney might not be up to CL football anymore but if we get to the final I still want him to be on the subs bench. He deserves a medal for his attitude alone
Billy, “Ok boss. Did you call me??”
“Yes Billy, we know this Real lot think they want to sign you. Here’s what you do. Wait till the tie is over, maybe 20 minutes to go, then I want you to make a really bad f@ck up, you know, deliberately, when it doesn’t matter. Just to put them off your trail. Good lad”
“No problem boss!”
😉
Saliba is a legend. He’s going nowhere.
Ipswich away may not be the walk-over that their lowly position in the table would suggest. They are in a fight for their continued presence in the premiership and, in Rory Delap, they have a much admired striker. They play some good football and will be up for a fight in front of a small but vociferous crowd.
Let’s not forget Wembley 6 May 1978, the word pre-match was “Ipswho”. They beat us one nil in the F A Cup Final that day.
I’m not saying that it will be a walkover Cicero but it is the kind of game that can be used to experiment MLS in that position.
At least White, Timber and MLS can play in midfield for the first leg Kev..
Let’s not forget Calafiori, he’s set to return very soon. Perhaps this weekend even.
Oops, just seen your comment Kev. Lol
Cicero, that cup final, and the one where Alan Clarke scored the winner for Leeds still stick in my throat!
Roger Osborne it was Andrew, Alan Clarke was 1972 vs Leeds, two terrible cup finals.
Ok Coach, regarding Tierney, yes I absolutely agree, he needs to be on the bench. I think you get a medal anyway, so Gabriel should still get a medal.
Mind you, I think I should focus on PSG first, not wise to get ahead of oneself…
you can add the one where the ball hit Brooking as he was ducking out of the way and the horse of the year one at Wembley. It’s not always plain sailing .
I prefer to remember the 1971 extra time winner by Charlie George, that completed The Double.
That was my first win at Wembley 1971, the clubs first domestic cup win since 1950, it’s easy to forget how shit we were for most of the late 1950’s and the 1960’s.
My first was 71 too, the television though, not Wembley. I was far too young. 😜
I got a ticket by buying every home match program of the season each program had a coupon and you needed a complete set to qualify. I attended every home game except one which I was locked out of but bought the program outside the ground.
The good old days… When football was about foo5ball.
Afternoon Rico and all.
just a quick happy easter to all.
Morning Geoff, happy Easter to you and yours too…
Good evening all. A Happy Easter to you.
The smell of the hot cross buns is still lingering in the kitchen.
All back up and running Rico. 👌
Afternoon Cicero, it is. 😜
Happy Easter to you too.
Hooray, everyone is back on track, Happy Easter.
And to you Kev..
Good Morning everyone
May your Easter be blessed, full of peace and happiness.
Today we see Arsenal Ladies take on Lyon in the CL SF. And tomorrow we see the Arsenal Men take on Ipswich in the EPL. A win for both teams, even two 1-0 results, will suffice. I don’t care if we keep on getting 1-0 wins all along.
My team for tomorrow…….Raya, White, Saliba, Kiwior, Tierney; MLS, Zinchenko, Odegaard, Nwaneri, Trossard, Sterling.