Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham faced each other for the first time in the Champions League when Arsenal took on Real Madrid.
The Gunners went into the game at the Emirates as the underdogs, but Mikel Arteta’s men were superior from the first minute of the game.
Real Madrid had a couple of moments where it looked like they could hurt Arsenal, but besides that, it was the North Londoners who were dictating the clash.
Bellingham would’ve loved to have had a big say on his return to England on Tuesday night, but it was his England midfield partner who stole the show.
What Jude Bellingham did after Declan Rice’s second goal for Arsenal vs Real Madrid
Rice was absolutely incredible for Arsenal in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
The Englishman started as a number eight, and he was constantly available for a pass on that left channel. He was tidy on the ball as well and entered the box on several occasions.
Rice even came close to scoring a header, but Thibaut Courtois pulled off a fantastic save to keep his side alive in the tie.
But, in the second half, Rice curled in a terrific free-kick to give Arsenal the lead. Then, less than 12 minutes later, the Arsenal number 41 did it again with an even better strike.
Real Madrid had no answer to those free-kicks. Courtois, who was brilliant on Tuesday night, couldn’t get close to either goal.
After his second strike, Paramount+ and CBS Sports commentator Clive Tyldesley claimed that he saw Bellingham shaking his head, almost in disbelief, after seeing his international teammate do what he did.
He said: “We got another glimpse of Jude Bellingham, his England teammate, shaking his head and thinking: ‘I’ve seen you in training, you don’t do that!’”
Even Carlo Ancelotti was shocked by Declan Rice’s goals
Nobody expected Rice to score one goal from a free-kick against Real Madrid, let alone two.
The England international is a complete footballer and he is incredibly talented in almost every phase of play. But, nobody had really seen his prowess from a direct free-kick.
Even Carlo Ancelotti, who would’ve watched a lot of Arsenal to prepare for the game, did not see that coming.
“I never expected, no one expected that Rice would score two goals from set-pieces, and he scored two goals from set-pieces today,” Ancelotti said after the game.
The last proper direct free-kick Arsenal scored came from Martin Odegaard’s foot in a Premier League game against Burnley back in 2021.
Arteta must be delighted that he has now found another player who is deadly from a set-piece.
