As I mentioned earlier, there wasn’t a realistic scenario in which Arsenal could achieve a result in the first leg that would allow us to travel to the Spanish capital with complete confidence of reaching the Champions League semi-finals.
Yet, that is precisely what nearly happened.
Of course, the Gunners are now favourites to progress to the next round, but if the opposition were anyone else, I would be less nervous defending a 3-0 lead. This nervousness stems from two factors.
As Gooners, we have been let down countless times before, and we now have a reputation for mentally crumbling when the pressure intensifies. It would be very typical of us to falter on Wednesday.
Most importantly, my nerves are rooted in my respect for Real Madrid. This is European royalty, a club whose entire history is based on finding a way to win knockout football in Europe. While they have never overturned such a large deficit, it is in their DNA to never give up, dig deep, and survive.
That is why thousands of Madridistas will flock to the Bernabéu. Although they are not pleased with their situation, they will fully expect at least a valiant attempt at a comeback. Where other fanbases might give up hope, supporting Los Blancos means adopting a different mindset. In this competition, they have been taught that you don’t accept elimination until it’s mathematically confirmed.
That mentality is ingrained in every manager and player the moment they step through the door. This is not the first time Carlo Ancelotti has faced pressure to keep his job by winning this trophy. Players like Modric, Carvajal, Courtois, and others have countless stories of how toxic the local media and supporters have been, yet the squad’s resilience has swiftly changed the narrative.
Bellingham will recall this time last year, being outplayed at the Etihad but emerging victorious on penalties. V. Junior can tap into memories of being moments away from elimination, only for his team to score twice in three minutes against Bayern Munich.
This has always been Real’s significant advantage in this tie. They have a group of players who frequently perform on this stage and know how to navigate routes to finals, meaning they won’t panic.
Most of our players arriving in Madrid have never been beyond this stage. Some Gooners are more confident than others that the job is done at the Emirates, and ultimately, they should be proven correct. However, a few may be in for a shock at how quickly momentum can shift.
Even if we wake up on Thursday planning for PSG or Aston Villa, some of my peers might find themselves surprised by how uncomfortable the second leg becomes.
An early goal for the home side will change the atmosphere in their stadium. Even if it remains goalless after 70 minutes, the psychology shifts if they suddenly break the deadlock.
This is where our manager earns his money. Not only does he need to discuss potential scenarios and how to react with his players in training, but he must also observe body language and tones of voice. It is his responsibility to ensure that no one boarding that plane is complacent or carrying the wrong attitude—those players should not be starting in Spain.
Mikel Arteta is the third-highest-paid coach in the world, and this is where he justifies that position. He must find the balance between using last week’s result as evidence that we can approach the occasion without fear, while also being cautious not to assume the hard work has been done.
While our manager won’t admit it, he’s not shy about using the darker arts of the sport. We’ve seen him instruct the goalkeeper to take his time at goal kicks, players to stay down, and throw-ins used for time-wasting.
That could well be the tactic, but I would prefer the Spaniard to think like this: If we can score, our hosts would then need to score four times just to force extra time!
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Could go 2 ways (obviously)
We sit back and They smash us 5 nil or we play them at their own game and get another convincing victory,they have to open up which will suit us .
Different atmosphere over there so let’s hope the players take it all in 4-1 to Arsenal
Play more possession based football, that’s one of our strengths. Madrid is under pressure not Arsenal, I just don’t see how we can mess this up honestly.
The last ten teams to visit the reining champion in Europe scored on all occasions, so a clean sheet for the cemetery of talents is highly unlikely.
It could really come down to losing the battle but winning the war for Arsenal, one thing for sure they will be caught on the break no doubt about that it’s just a part of the champion’s DNA.
Surely they are going to come at us full throttle hoping for a goal in the first ten minutes, we could very well have a 1 – 1 stalemate at the break.
The cemetery of talents at home is a different animal, if they score in the first ten minutes, it will be the ultimate test for Arsenal.
But Arsenal ruthlessness on the road is well documented, Arsenal must control the midfield, with Partey and Rice sits in a double pivot, ready to release Martineli at a moment notice.
A discipline 4 2 3 1 has to be the set up in the Spanish capital for Arsenal.
I’ve read the excerpts of pre madrid Arteta conference. This guy is too smart to not be carried away by the unassailable looking 1st leg score. The Remontada mantra never frightens Arteta. When he should answer he answers when not he knows how to evade. He respects history like Henry’s goal at Madrid but takes it into current context. His interview resembles how the team is going to approach the game. Streetwise! Those who doubt the overturn of the 3-0 score are the ones who doubted PSV would overturn the 7-1 deficit. Remontada in practice v ARSENAL impossible!
I’ve not come across a pundit or journalist reports predicting Arsenal’s win or draw at SB. Please guys don’t rule out this scenario as well in your analysis. This Arsenal team is 2nd in the most difficult EPL for 3 consecutive seasons for a reason. Arsenal are only crippled by unfortunate matters like unprecedent too many injuries to key players, too many ref inconsistent decisions and unconvincing red cards. The team of brave hearts of Tony Adams and Pat Vieira will not kneel down to hallucination Remontada propaganda.
Hope we can use Villa and Dortmund tonight as examples to help us tomorrow
Yeah Dan examples in what respects? The 1st leg winners became too complacent? Losers threatened but did not succeed at last to overturning the previous results?
Yes lol
I would take that scenario
Well almost the.perfect request answered !
Ambachew
Don’t forget that also crippled by not having a goal scoring striker, no cover for Saka, and added virtually nothing to the attack last Summer; Sterling has done little so I don’t count him.
And as for finishing 2nd, depends on whether someone is an optimist or a cynic;
On the one hand we finished 2nd, that is true. However, we also failed to hold onto 1st place 2 years in a row and dropped to 2nd.
We have improved and are competitive, but far from the finished article in my opinion. We need a better striker, another attack minded midfielder, a B2B midfielder, and likely another winger as well.
Hopefully this Summer we finally address these holes in the squad, and are fit and at our best to start the season next year and finish on top.
Arsenal Women currently leading 5-0 in domestic front on their way to closing the gap on leaders Chelsea. They in practice are the harbingers of the men as they did last week when thumping the Real Madrid Women 3-0 at UCL QFs to advance to SFs. I wish Reene Slegers to be present triumphantly at SB tomorrow.
I’d be lying if I said I am not worried especially after Aston Villa nearly forced their tie vs PSG into penalties. We will need to score at least a goal to seal the deal and if we concede in the 1st half then boy will we be in trouble! Anyway, as long as it’s Rice-Partey in midfield and no red-card/brainfarts we will survive.
Real do not press, so we have no reason to sit back. I am sure we will play very similar to the first leg. Don’t give much away and hope Rice can score his 3rd and 4th free kick. Sitting back would be suicide.
We already got them in a scope, all that is left is to eliminate them. Whichever way we the coaching staff see fit, including sitting back, because they are not comfortable with possession neither are they free scoring at the moment. I know fans hate it when their team play that way but in this context I don’t have any problems with it, especially if you consider the fact we are good at defending.
*was meant to say “the coaching staff” not “we the coaching staff”.
Silencing the crowd is noteworthy. Hence the first 15 minutes may define the proceedings. Tonight PSG did well by scoring first or not conceding first which may shook the morale of the home team and crowd. Not to be perturbed by the nuisances of the ref who had benign prior meetings with Madrid 4 times. Maiden for Arsenal. Madrid players are notorious for putting pressure on the ref seeking pens or dismissal of opponents for perceived fouls or wasting time. 4 Arsenal players if possible need to avoid yellow so as not to miss the crucial 1st leg match v PSG at Emirates in SFs.
PSG v EPL. Unbelievable PSG won/eliminated 3 EPL teams namely Man City, Liverpool and Aston Villa. Of course in the league phase they were beaten by Arsenal 2-0 at Emirates. Lock horns again at SF stage? First thing first as Arsenal should not underestimate Real Madrid’s ambition despite their unassailable looking 3-0 lead. COYG!
This is a game were i think Madrid will win but will still get eliminated by Arsenal,they defense an midfield are inferior to that of arsenal so the Gunners will put 2 past Madrid defense, so my final score is a 3-2 will for real Madrid which will also help our lovely Arsenal to progress to the semis
Cheers Naftali Gooner mate. Good day and of course night!
Which shirt Arsenal to wear tonight? If it was African inspired all black shirt very fine omen. I like it. I can’t remember Arsenal losing a match sporting that kit. If I made a mistake I’ll be corrected. COYG!
I hope we sit deep, and play on the counter.
I know some are saying that we should play like we did in the first leg as Real do not press from the front, but as we saw at the Emirates, the odd slip up and Mbappe or Vini are clean through. Why even allow that risk when you don’t need to?
A 3-0 lead allows us to go into a more defensive setup, with plenty of leeway change things should they score first.
Do to Real, what teams do to us. Our best attribute is our defending, and Real have no target man to cross it into, other than the odd late run from Bellingham. Also, Real are at their best on the counter. They are not like a Barca, City or even ourselves with cute little passes in around the penalty box to open teams up. It’s not their game.
PSG and Barca had big leads last night, yet both still nearly went out because they continued to play in the way they normally do. It was terrible game management from both sides. So Arsenal should switch things up from the first leg.
One thing is for sure if you rush Arsenal we will score you.
Mbappe.
Vinicius. Bellingham. Rodrygo.
Valverde. Tchouameni.
Garcia. Rudiger. Ascensio. Vazquez.
Cortouis.
Merino.
Martinelli. Odegaard. Saka.
Rice. Partey.
Skelly. Kiwior. Saliba. Timber.
Raya
My thoughts on tonight’s game is that we can’t afford to go there and try to park the bus so to speak. In my opinion we’ll be asking for trouble if we do that.
While I don’t mean we go gung-ho at them, we’re in a position where we can attack them with a bit more caution in mind. I’m saying that we need to pose a threat as well as do our defensive duty’s.
Although there are still some concerns of a Madrid come back, lets face it there history shows you need to give them the utmost respect. One of my concerns is how strong the officials need to be.
Because lets face it, we’re not just going to be playing Real here, the team are going into what will be a cauldron of noise, the Real players are going to be trying every trick in the book to turn this tie around by fare means or fail. So it’s vital that the referee stays strong, and doesn’t fall for any dodgy antics that are most likely coming his way.
Now the big thing for me tonight is Arsenal’s character, it’s been questioned on more than one occasion over the past two seasons at least, and rightly so I might add.
But tonight I truly hope that the team can come of age and produce another all round performance that we all as Arsenal fans can be proud of.
📢Come on you Gunners.😉👍
Correct Derek.
Anyone saying Arsenal has no character is not serious. We beat PSV 7-1 on their home turf. We have only lost once away to Inter which might be our finals opponents! It is thus unfair to talk of Arsenal having no character. Besides, this is a new format CL of 36 instead of 32 teams. Who knows? There might emerge new champions. The old order is somewhat shackled.
David Rusa,
So they won 7-1 at PSV well done. But that doesn’t compare to beating Real Madrid, get real.
If you read my post I said the the teams character has been rightly questioned over the past two seasons at least. Because its plain to see that they’ve baulked on more than one occasion when its mattered most.
We can all come up with some positive results to fit the narrative. But the question of them showing character when it really matters still stands.
Its a question that needs to be answered tonight, and if it is no one will be more glad than me to give them the credit they will deserve if they complete the job in hand.
Derek, Mark your words, “Rightly questioned.” The question is by who? You say it is Real Madrid and not PSV, but the same Arsenal team beat Real Madrid by 3-0. Did you question their character then? Is it every team that beats Madrid by those many goals?
I can agree that Bernabeu is a difficult place to play at because of the massive noise by supporters and Madrid’s antics at home including trying to influence referees but games are won on the pitch not through noise and other off field gimmicks. Our players need to be calm and composed and let their football do the talking. Then we shall talk about whether or not they have the character. It is just a few hours to kick off and we shall judge after the final whistle.
David Rusa,
I hear what you say. The rightly questioned was not just by me, there have been pleny of posts on over the last two seasons questioning the teams character.
While the PSV game was a good win, Arsenal had the back up of the seconds leg at home.
Here after the first leg (3-0), with the second leg being away, I still maintain that we need to see the team show the character when it really matters.
As for the noise, well that’s part of it. Because the team are going to have to show some character from that point of view as well.
As for Madrid’s antics, hopefully we’ll get a strong referee who will not allow himself to be influenced by them. And also the players have got to play smart, and don’t give the referee any decisions to make by doing anything stupid.
And as for the gimmicks part of your post, well our own club could give a few lessons where gimmicks are concerned. (Win the Dog springs to mind).
But having said all that good luck to the boys tonight, I hope they can finish the job that they started so superbly in the first leg.
📢Come on you Gunners.👍😉
How do you define “rightly questioned”? This is the type of stuff that keeps getting trotted out whenever we have setbacks.
In what games have Arsenal demonstrated that they lack character over the past two seasons?
David
Early exits from cup rounds, or when City or Liverpool drop points we fail to capitalize and also drop points.
We had 1st place for over 90% of the season, and then choked it away when City walked us down and won the PL.
Or last year we had Villa at home and an opportunity to increase the gap over City. Instead, we got played off the pitch at home by Villa and lost 0-2.
That capitulation was the beginning of City walking us down again and winning the title.
I think it is more than fair to question our character, as we have won nothing and in terms of titles and trophies we have lost top position 2 years in a row.
I hope this year is different and we finish with a CL trophy. Maybe next year we add key positions and players and finally finish on top. Until they actually overcome and achieve something, their “character” and “mentality” will continue to raise questions, and rightly so.
Losing a game does not mean a team lacks character. Villa had one good half against us. It is inaccurate if not dishonest to say that they played us off the park.
To call into question a team’s character because we lost one game in 18 during the last half of a season. Is that really a fair assessment?
We don’t want to lose any games but whilst losses are disappointing it is not reasonable to call into question the team’s “character” on the basis you have given.
There are things we have lacked in certain games but to call into question the character of the team is unwarranted, particularly during the last two seasons.
Or are you now suggesting that every team that does not win a title in a year lacks character? Or does it mean that every time any team loses a match they therefore lack character?
David,
I was about to answer your post of 6.27pm, but having read Durand’s post of 6.40pm, I think he covers the question of Arsenals character over the last two seasons very well.
But no doubt your about to come out in their defense as well as Arteta’s.
No negative talk is allowed on this forum, we must be blindly optimistic all the time mustn’t we. 🙄🤦♂️🤷♂️
They just have to play like they did in the first leg, but this time with more focus and defend well.
We will score them. And they won’t score us 4 goals.
If Saka and Martinelli are on form, along with Odegaard, we will pose problems for their defence and, don’t forget, they need to attack us from the first whistle.
Our defence in the first leg was excellent and there is no reason to think they won’t play the same way again.
If talking won a game of football, then we have no chance, but the opposite of that is that empty vessels make the most noise – we’ll know which one is true in around ten hours – let’s hope the only way to watch CL football live in the UK is at the Emirates North London. COYG!!
As usual, spot on, Ken. Sometimes I get incensed seeing our own supporters trying to demean our team instead of uplifting it. A pessimist is not a useful supporter.
Have not read anyone said we will go out tonight
Just that we are nervous
It’s simply respecting Real Madrid
Confident Gooner ken1945 I like your comments. On this particular historic night I love to see more of the same reads like yours. Cheers!
Hey
They are wearing the kit you wanted 👍
Patience and concentration.
Don’t commit too many players forward, then we play on the counter as they will be pushing forward looking for goals.
Our defence got us here and definitely will get us through to the semis. Tournaments are won by teams with a stingy defence. If our defence is consistent, we will beat them by 2-0 at their home. Watch out for a goal similar to the one we scored on the weekend. Arteta is a defensive midfield coach. He will set up his team to defend as well as attack. He won’t let them keep the ball as usual. Good luck Arsenal….,.
The best result Madrid can get tonight is draw.
Madrid are vulnerable from corners. I expect at least 1goal from set pieces not 2 as we did last time out against them. The defence led by Saliba showed they don’t concede goal without Maghales. Tonight is another opportunity to show that they are capable of scoring header without Maghales. COYG!
Rightly stated @ken1945. Empty vessels make the most noise. What can they (Madrid) do now that they didn’t do, or have not done in the first leg?
Has Arsenal ever surrender a lead from 3 goals up in the CL?
Whatever happens, Arsenal will surely
knock Madrid out tonight.
We’ll play the most boring possession sideway passing that will put the crowd to sleep in the 1st 20 min and then drop into a low block etihad style if we concede.
Key focus is the 1st 20 min will dictate the nature of this match.
They are weak at the back. Sitting back is a recipe for disaster as that is where their strengths are.
We need to be pragmatic and keep switched on. Despite our defensive strength, we really do go to sleep sometimes for a few minutes and we can’t do that against Real.
COYG!! I am nervous (because it is Madrid) but hopeful.
Tonite Mikel Arteta will be respected more and Real will want to hire him as successor to Carlo. Arsenal will make history again even if it matters Real Madrid win for the night but arsenal go through.
What the F was Partey doing?
4-1 up FFS
oops
wrong article