Arsenal dream of rewriting history

If Arsenal's 3-0 victory over Real Madrid in the first leg in London was considered an "earthquake in European football", then in the rematch a week later, the Gunners defeating the home team 2-1 to win a ticket to the semi-finals was almost an obvious outcome.

Return to the big guy position

Arsenal was the first English team to win at the Bernabeu when Thierry Henry scored the only goal to eliminate Real Madrid on the threshold of the quarter-finals in the 2005-2006 season. Arsenal is also recognized as the only Premier League representative to date to have won twice at the "White Vultures' lair" after defeating Real Madrid in the second leg of the European Cup quarter-finals in the early morning of April 17, 2025.

Arsenal won convincingly against Real Madrid right at the Bernabeu (Photo: ARSENALFC)

Both sides stood on two extremes and the team that did not have enough desire to win had to stop playing early, regardless of the fact that last season Real Madrid was crowned champion in the European arena.

There was no miraculous comeback for "Los Blancos" despite experts, former Real Madrid players and coach Carlo Ancelotti's team taking turns to boost the team's morale. They were lucky when Bukayo Saka missed a penalty in the 13th minute. Luck smiled again when Vinicius Junior stole the ball from Arsenal's defense to score the equalizer 1-1 just 3 minutes after conceding the first goal.

However, on a day of bad luck, Real Madrid paid the price for their ineffective play, especially in attack with star player Kylian Mbappe. The French striker had a goal disallowed after 3 minutes due to offside and was disappointed when he failed to win a penalty in the 23rd minute, which many experts believe Mbappe should have received a card for diving.

With too few shots and poor shooting, Real Madrid were punished by two classy goals from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, losing both matches to the same opponent for the first time in the same season. So from the position of a strong candidate for the championship, Real Madrid left the game with a weak team, lacking the skills to deal with opponents with a cohesive playing style, without stars but with a lot of fighting spirit and desire to succeed.

Winning both legs of the Champions League quarter-finals helped the Gunners eliminate an unstable Real Madrid, dispelling the psychological ghost that haunted them for many years, and opening up a hopeful future. Until now, many people have acknowledged that Mikel Arteta's efforts have gradually transformed a team that was not highly rated before the season back to the position of a European giant.

All-round offensive and defensive play

Who would have thought that Bukayo Saka would be out for months due to injury but would return with a brilliant performance against Real Madrid? Who would have predicted a Declan Rice who would improve day by day, asserting his leadership position with a comprehensive offensive and defensive style of play; a Mikel Merino who would go from "a substitute" to "a killer" for his compatriots, or a defense that would play increasingly comprehensively, and be the best not only in the Premier League but also in the Champions League?

Arsenal may be laughed at for finishing second in the Premier League for three consecutive seasons. However, the strength of the team that Mikel Arteta and former sporting director Edu spent half a decade building is not to be underestimated. Strong in the air, fast on the counter-attack, physically strong and able to control the midfield, Arsenal deserve to be among the best teams in Europe.

If David Raya is the goalkeeper with the third most effective cross-catching rate in Europe, then 18-year-old defender Myles Lewis-Skelly, who has been playing regularly at the end of the season, is the factor that makes Real players crazy with his runs from home. Jakub Kiwior, a center-back who is often on the bench, is the one who "kills" Kylian Mbappe in this match while Vinicius Junior has a headache because of Jurrien Timber on the left wing.

With good attack despite lacking a real striker (having to push Merino up to play as a striker), solid defense and a versatile style of play when having to change state, Arsenal are confident that they will make PSG suffer the same fate as Real Madrid. These two teams will meet in the first leg of the semi-finals on April 29 in London.

It is no coincidence that European experts highly rate Arsenal's championship potential. When Barcelona, ​​PSG and Inter Milan are still having to "split their efforts" to achieve the "triple, quadruple" goals this season, it is certainly more difficult for them than Arsenal - the team that only has the Champions League to strive for.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/arsenal-mo-viet-lai-lich-su-196250417202005198.htm