After a tightly contested first half between 15-time European champions Real Madrid and Arsenal—which saw Bukayo Saka’s penalty saved by Thibaut Courtois after Raúl Asencio was penalized for a foul on Mikel Merino, and Kylian Mbappé denied a penalty following a challenge by Declan Rice after a lengthy VAR check—the half ended 0-0.
In the second half, Saka made up for his missed penalty and broke the deadlock in the 65th minute for Arsenal who went into the second leg fixture with a comfortable 3-0 lead.
Vinicius Jr. responded just two minutes later for Real Madrid, but Gabriel Martinelli’s composed finish in stoppage time (90+3′) secured a 2-1 win on the night and a commanding 5-1 aggregate victory for Arsenal.
The Gunners now march into the semifinals for the first time since 2009 and will face Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
Meanwhile, in the other quarterfinal clash, Bayern Munich were eliminated after a 2-2 draw with Inter Milan, who advanced with a narrow 4-3 aggregate win.
Goals from Harry Kane and Serge Gnabry weren’t enough for the German giants, as strikes from Lautaro Martinez and Benjamin Pavard propelled the Italian side to the semifinals, where they will meet FC Barcelona.
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