Arsenal put in the performance of the season against Real Madrid on Tuesday evening as they won 3-0 against the reigning European champions.
This is a game that will live long in the memory in north London, and the man of the hour is undoubtedly Declan Rice.
Rice scored two incredible free-kicks during the game, and Rice has earned plenty of praise for his performance.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Paul Merson has shared his verdict on Rice’s goals, and he says that he couldn’t believe what he was seeing from these strikes.
Indeed, Merson went as far as to say that he didn’t think it was possible for players to bend the ball in this way as Rice scored two incredible set-piece goals.
Paul Merson stunned by Declan Rice free-kicks
Merson shared his verdict on Arsenal’s win and Rice’s goals.
The pundit says that the goals were phenomenal, claiming that he didn’t think it was possible to get that much bend on the ball.
Rice was compared to Roberto Carlos by some fans after the game for his ability to curl the ball around the Madrid wall.
“It’s probably the greatest night at the Emirates, it has to be. These are the champions of Europe and Arsenal destroyed them,” Merson said.
“Three phenomenal goals. I didn’t think people could bend balls like that! Two phenomenal free-kicks and Merino; if Erling Haaland, Harry Kane or Kylian Mbappe scored that, we’d be talking about it for years.
“I would say the greatest night at the Emirates. They have to get through the first 20 minutes at the Bernabeu now, if they score early, you never know.
“It’s Real Madrid. The first 20 minutes will be important, that place will be rocking.”
Arsenal stats vs Real Madrid
Declan Rice’s two goals were bolts from the blue on Tuesday evening, but, make no mistake about it, Arsenal were good value for their win against Madrid.
Indeed, as the stats show, Arsenal were, by some distance, the better team on the night, and while two free-kick goals were the difference, it was nothing more than Arsenal deserve.
| Real Madrid | ||
| 12 | Shots | 9 |
| 11 | Shots on target | 3 |
| 54% | Possession | 46% |
| 1.64 | Expected goals | 0.5 |
| 489 | Passes | 436 |
Arsenal were unbelievable against Madrid, and while those two free-kick goals were the difference, the Gunners absolutely deserved the win.
The job is far from done yet, Arsenal still have to go to the Bernabeu and protect this lead, but with a three-goal advantage heading into the second-leg, Arsenal are very much favourites to get through to the semi-finals.
