Real Madrid defender Dani Carvajal had to be pushed backwards after he grabbed the back of Bukayo Saka’s neck in a fiery encounter.
The heated confrontation occurred at half time of Arsenal’s 2-1 victory and 5-1 triumph on aggregate as players from both teams made their way back to the dressing rooms at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Saka and Carvajal clashed just before the Gunners star headed down the tunnel[/caption]
And Carvajal, who has been sidelined since last October with a serious knee injury, looked to inject some needle into the contest.
As Saka exited the field, Carvajal confronted the Arsenal star before he placed his hand on the back of Saka’s neck.
Carvajal then pointed his finger in Saka’s face, with the Gunners winger visibly frustrated at the Madrid star’s act.
Saka then shoved Carvajal away before several figures stepped in to cool the tensions as Gunners substitute Ben White shooed the Spaniard.
The clash occurred after a goalless first half, but it did not lack drama.
Saka had the chance to open the scoring in the second leg and boost Arsenal’s advantage to four goals when the Gunners were awarded a penalty in the tenth minute after Madrid’s Raul Asencio was deemed to have fouled Mikel Merino following a VAR review.
However, Saka’s attempt at a Panenka fell flat as Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois guessed the right way and stuck out his right arm to keep the ball out.
Speaking after the contest, Saka opened up on his decision-making process for the penalty.
“It can happen,” Saka said.
“I tried something, but it didn’t work.
“I was confident I was going to score tonight. I learn in every moment.
“Tonight, I am more focused on enjoying the win and then I will review it properly.”
Madrid then had a penalty of their own in the 23rd minute when Declan Rice was adjudged to have hauled down Kylian Mbappe inside the box.
But the decision was overturned after a lengthy VAR review as a Madrid player was deemed to have been offside in the build-up.
Rice initially received a yellow card for the foul, which would have ruled him out of the first leg of the semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain, only for the referee to rescind it.
Saka atoned for his shocking penalty miss in the 65th minute when he dinked the ball over Courtois from close range after he was played in by a perfectly-weighted pass from Merino.
Yet the Gunners’ advantage in the second leg lasted all of just two minutes.
Goalkeeper David Raya rolled the ball to William Saliba but the Frenchman was robbed of the ball by Vinicius Junior as the Brazilian slammed home into an empty net.
But it was the Gunners would have the final say at the Bernabeu.
As the clock ticked towards full-time, Merino slipped in another delightful through ball but this time in the path of Gabriel Martinelli.
Martinelli showed plenty of composure to slot home past Courtois and put the tie to bed.
There would be no further twists as Arsenal booked a spot in the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 2009, where they will face Paris Saint-Germain.
