Mikel Arteta targets Champions League glory after Arsenal knock out Real Madrid

A jubilant Mikel Arteta said the momentum is with Arsenal to win the Champions League following their historic victory against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

Bukayo Saka, who missed a first-half penalty, opened the scoring midway through the second period before Vinicius Junior responded just two minutes later only for Gabriel Martinelli to crown a famous 2-1 win on the night, and a crushing 5-1 aggregate victory, in stoppage time.

Arsenal, who will face Paris St Germain for a place in the semi-finals, made history by becoming the first English team to win in the Bernabeu twice, following Thierry Henry’s masterclass here nearly two decades ago.

And Arteta said: “The feeling that we have is a reality. We are ready to compete against anybody. And now we have to continue to do that because we have some momentum now.

“We are in the semi-final for only the third time in our history, and I am proud of the manner and the way we did it. Not only by the way we played, but also with the circumstances and the amount of injuries we have had.

“It was my first time as a coach in this dugout, and I realised after three minutes that in this stadium, anything is possible. They are the specialists of creating chaos and belief. But my players showed their own maturity and it is a night to be very proud of.”

Arsenal held a 3-0 advantage following Declan Rice’s supreme set-piece double at the Emirates last week, and Saka had the opportunity to kill the tie as early as the 13th minute when Arsenal were awarded a penalty after VAR spotted a foul on Mikel Merino by Raul Asencio.

Captain Martin Odegaard took the ball before handing it to Saka. But Arsenal’s star man fluffed an attempted Panenka with Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois palming