Arsenal Defeated King of Europe With A Unique Trick

ARSENAL DEFEATED THE KING OF EUROPE WITH A UNIQUE “DEAD BALL” TRICK: 3 AND A HALF YEARS FOR A BIG MATCH

With a resounding 3-0 victory over Real Madrid, Arsenal are not only on the verge of rewriting their Champions League history, but also of elevating the art of the “dead ball”.

“The soft curve” at Emirates

“Over the past few months, we’ve been saying to each other that Arsenal haven’t scored from a free kick in three and a half years. So, what are the odds of scoring two goals in 12 minutes, of such quality and importance, from a player who has never scored from a free kick?”.

Coach Mikel Arteta had to exclaim like that, after witnessing Declan Rice score a double against Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. At the Emirates, the team led by Arteta crushed the defending champions 3-0, thereby gaining a big advantage ahead of the second leg of the quarter-finals.

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DECLAN RICE DELIGHTS ARSENAL FANS

On an unforgettable night, Declan Rice delighted Arsenal fans with two goals from direct free kicks between the 58th and 70th minutes, even drawing comparisons to the legendary David Beckham.

The 26-year-old became the first player to score two goals from direct free kicks in a Champions League knockout match, and only the fifth to do so.

With the first kick, Declan Rice “curved” the ball into a perfect curve towards the far corner of the goal.

With the second kick, Rice took advantage of a gap in the wall (3 Arsenal players squeezed into the wall, then separated at the moment Rice swung his leg to finish) to send the ball into the top right corner of the goal.

The free kicks were so beautiful that former midfielder Clarence Seedorf had to admit: “Even Superman couldn’t save that situation”.

Courtois, the best goalkeeper in Europe, couldn’t save the situation when faced with Declan Rice’s skillful shots.

PLAYERS WHO HAVE SCORED 2 GOALS FROM FREE KICKS IN ONE CHAMPIONS LEAGUES MATCH

Before the match at the Emirates, Declan Rice had never scored from a direct free-kick in nine seasons of professional football, including 338 club games for Arsenal and West Ham, and 64 games for England.

As for Arsenal, their last successful free-kick in all competitions was in September 2021, when Martin Odegaard scored against Burnley.

For that reason, no fan, including Rice himself, believed that he would successfully score twice in just 12 minutes.

From Thierry Henry’s solo masterpiece in the 2005/06 round of 16 to Declan Rice’s double at the Emirates. The goals against Real Madrid were not simply masterpieces, but also opened up some of the most memorable matches for Arsenal in Champions League history.

3 AND A HALF YEARS FOR A BIG GAME

Set-pieces have become an indispensable part of Arsenal under Arteta. With the support of Nicolas Jover, the world’s best set-piece coach, the Emirates team has turned them into a trademark “weapon”.

Including the two goals against Real Madrid, the Emirates team has 32 goals from “dead balls” since the beginning of last season (21 goals this season). Thanks to that, they have an additional source of goals and create diversity in their playing style.

Of course, being too dependent on one option also becomes a “double-edged sword”. In fact, opponents have gradually “figured out” Arsenal’s moves and made it more difficult for them to exploit set-pieces.

According to statistics, the “dead ball” that led to Arsenal’s only goal from mid-January until the match against Real Madrid was the moment Mikel Merino headed the ball into Chelsea’s net on March 16.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE QUARTER-FINALS FIRST LEG

Entering the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Arsenal were without centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes, who scored 14/16 goals for the Gunners from corner kicks.

That’s why Real Madrid believed they couldn’t be hurt by set pieces, not to mention the time Arsenal couldn’t celebrate from a direct free kick for 3 and a half years.

But then, Arsenal still tore the defending champions’ net thanks to 2 brilliant moments from Declan Rice.

Are Arsenal and Declan Rice lucky? Since the 2018/19 season, 21 players have been assigned the responsibility of taking direct free kicks for Arsenal, with a total of 146 times standing in front of the ball.

The statistics are enough to show how rigorous the Emirates team has gone through a rigorous screening process to find a reputable free kick taker, along with many other aspects of expertise and personnel changes through each transfer period.

Declan Rice has only stepped up to the free kick spot 6 times, a much more modest number compared to Odegaard (32 times), Granit Xhaka (23 times) or Nicolas Pepe (14 times).

But to take on such a heavy responsibility and score 2 goals against Real Madrid, the English midfielder affirmed that he “practiced a lot of free kicks and just did it, there was nothing to lose”.

ARSENAL STILL CONSTANTLY IMPROVE THEMSELVES

Martial arts legend Bruce Lee once said: “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks, I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times”. Three and a half years since his last successful free kick, Arsenal have continued to improve themselves.

Arteta is ready to accept many sarcasm, comparing his team to the rough, pragmatic Stoke City of the 2010s. Now, the set-piece situation brings fear to every team that faces them, when witnessing Declan Rice “stepping into the light”.

Arsenal have become the best team to score from set-piece situations in Europe, using the “dead ball trick” to defeat the Champions League champions. After many seasons of absence or failure to advance, they are full of opportunities to rewrite history after the “magical London night”, at the same time marking a new step on the journey back to the top position.

ARSENAL VS REAL MADRID KEY STATS

This was Real Madrid’s heaviest defeat in the first leg of a Champions League knockout tie, equalling their 1-4 defeat to Dortmund in the 2012/13 semi-finals.

Arsenal’s win was the 12th time an English side have won by three or more goals in the first leg of a UEFA Champions League knockout tie. The previous 11 times, teams had progressed.

Real Madrid have lost five games in the 2024/25 Champions League, equalling their most in a European Cup/Champions League campaign (2000/01).

Arsenal had 11 shots on target; the most shots on target by a team in a UEFA Champions League knockout tie against Real Madrid since 2003/04.

Arsenal have scored 21 goals from set pieces in all competitions this season (excluding penalties), more than any other Premier League side.