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Victor Petkov
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Arsenal stun Real Madrid with dominant 3-0 win in Champions League 1/4-final
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Declan Rice scored two amazing free-kicks to give Arsenal huge boost towards the semi-finals

Arsenal delivered a masterclass at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night, securing a commanding 3-0 victory over Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

From the opening whistle, Mikel Arteta’s men pressed aggressively and took control of the game. In the 13th minute, Gabriel Martinelli outpaced Federico Valverde and laid the ball off to Mikel Merino, who teed up Thomas Partey for a powerful strike. Thibaut Courtois was equal to the task, making a sharp save. Moments later, Arsenal appealed for a penalty following a handball by Raul Asensio, but the referee deemed it unintentional due to the close proximity.

Real Madrid’s best chance in the first half came after a defensive lapse by Jakub Kiwior. Vinícius Júnior slipped a pass to Kylian Mbappé, who fired just over the bar. However, the flag was raised for a marginal offside, which would have been reviewed by VAR had the ball found the net.

In the 58th minute, Declan Rice stepped up for a free kick just outside the box and curled a stunning effort into the bottom left corner, leaving Courtois rooted – 1-0 Arsenal. Just nine minutes later, Rice repeated the feat, this time with an even more sublime strike into the top corner to double the lead and ignite the home crowd.

Arsenal were relentless. In the 75th minute, Leandro Trossard sent in a dangerous cross from the left, Ethan Nwaneri (Lewis-Skelly) smartly laid it off, and Merino finished with precision to make it 3-0.

Real Madrid’s night went from bad to worse when Eduardo Camavinga received a second yellow card late on, reducing Los Blancos to ten men. With a three-goal cushion and a clean sheet, Arsenal now head to the Santiago Bernabéu for the second leg in a commanding position — on the verge of reaching their first Champions League semi-final since 2009.