GUNNERS GUNS - DOWN THE GALACTICOS

It was a dream come true for the Gunners, who beat Real Madrid 3-0 at the Emirates Stadium, on a night that allowed Declan Rice steal the show with two direct free kick goals. Mikel Merino sealed the victory with a third goal, giving Arsenal a three - goal lead ahead of their second leg to Bernabeu.

Real Madrid’s star-studded squad would intimidate any team but Arsenal defied the odds emerging as the headliners.

Jude Bellingham, Luka Modric and Eduardo Camavinga, who was sent off in the 90+4 minute, occupied the midfield but were unable to quench Arsenal's fire.

Speaking to Amazon Prime Video, Bellingham admitted that Real Madrid were ‘lucky’ to not concede more than three goals.

“We were nowhere near it. That’s the fact, and Arsenal were really good,” he said.

“I know two of their goals were free kicks and really good pieces of individual delivery, but they could have had way more."

“We’re lucky to get away with three. But there is a second leg, that’s what we’re holding onto. We’re going to need something unbelievably special, something crazy really, " the English midfielder added.

Bellingham words were backed up by match stats which proved the Gunners were far much resilient than the Galacticos.

Arsenal had a 54% dominance compared to Madrid's 46%. The Gunners also had 11 shots on target out of 12 total shots while Madrid had 3 opportunities to score out of 9 total shots.

Real Madrid returned home with a frustrated spirit but their hopes lies in the semi-final ,when the second leg gets underway at the Bernabeu. What magic will they have to orchestrate to maintain their position as UEFA champions after such an unexpected defeat?