Mikel Arteta's side are through to the semifinals after a historic 5-1 aggregate win against the 15-time European champions
Arsenal enjoyed a historic night at Santiago Bernabeu, beating Real Madrid 2-1 to secure a stunning 5-1 aggregate victory over the 15-time European champions and book their spot in the Champions League semi-finals against Paris Saint Germain.
It was a dream evening for the Gunners, who never looked like surrendering the 3-0 lead they took into the second leg following their convincing win over Carlo Ancelotti's side in north London last week, although they did have to endure a nervy period in the first half after Bukayo Saka had seen an attempted Panenka penalty saved by Thibaut Courtois.
Madrid were awarded a penalty of their own soon after as Declan Rice was adjudged to have pulled down Kylian Mbappe, only for the decision to be reversed after a long VAR check.
Arsenal then saw out the first half relatively comfortably, with the hosts failing to register a single shot on target, and they then looked to have seized control of the game on 65 minutes when Saka raced onto Martin Odegaard's delightful through ball and clipped a superb finish over the advancing Courtois.
But a mistake from William Saliba moments later allowed Vinicius Jr to draw Madrid level on the night and give them some hope with 20 minutes still remaining.
There was to be no famous comeback from the hosts, however, with Arsenal keeping them at bay comfortably before Gabriel Martinelli raced away in the final seconds to put the seal on a special night for the Gunners.
GOAL rates Arsenal's players from the Bernabeu…
AFPGoalkeeper & Defence
David Raya (7/10):
Came and gathered the ball so well to relieve the pressure on his defence. Had very little to do in terms of making saves.
Jurrien Timber (8/10):
Continued his superb form. Just such an impressive player in all aspects of the game. So strong against Vinicius.
William Saliba (8/10):
Colossal performance at the heart of Arsenal's defence until he was caught napping by Vinicius for the equaliser. Poor mistake, but was massive otherwise.
Jakub Kiwior (8/10):
As good as he was in the first leg. Has come in for Gabriel and looked right at home.
Myles Lewis-Skelly (8/10):
Another huge game where the teenager has looked totally unfazed, even against a winger of the quality of Rodrygo.
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Thomas Partey (8/10):
Calm and composed. Moved the ball well and swept up in front of the defence. Excellent display.
Declan Rice (9/10):
Outstanding. Just never ever stopped. Another all-action display from Arsenal's star midfielder.
Martin Odegaard (6/10):
Really struggled in the first half. Sloppy in possession and was dispossessed too easily at times, causing moves to break down when Arsenal were threatening. Credit to him, though, as he improved a lot after the interval.
AFPAttack
Bukayo Saka (7/10):
Awful penalty, which seemed to knock him off his game for the rest of the first half. But was very good after the interval, running himself into the ground before scoring a wonderful goal to make it 1-0.
Mikel Merino (8/10):
Worked as hard as always and produced a moment of real quality to set up Saka's goal before also releasing Martinelli for the second late on.
Gabriel Martinelli (7/10):
Tested Courtoius with an effort just before the break. Found a lot of space at times and finally got clear in the final seconds to score and put the seal on a wonderful night for Arsenal.
AFPSubs & Manager
Leandro Trossard (N/A):
On for the tiring Saka as the clock ticked down.
Kieran Tierney (N/A):
Came on in injury time.
Ben White (N/A):
Came on in injury time.
Oleksandr Zinchenko (N/A):
Came on in injury time.
Mikel Arteta (8/10):
His biggest moment as Arsenal manager. Had his team perfectly drilled to frustrate Madrid and see the tie out.
