Arsenal took a massive step towards eliminating Real Madrid from the UEFA Champions League with a commanding 3-0 victory in the first leg on Tuesday night.
Declan Rice stunned the visitors with two sensational free-kick goals before Merino capped off the night with a superb strike to seal the emphatic win.
The 15-time European champions now face an uphill battle — needing to score at least four unanswered goals in the return leg to stay in the competition next week.
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti admitted his side’s chances of reaching the Champions League semi-finals were low after the defeat at Arsenal, but warned that the reigning champions could still produce some magic at home.
“Normally this team raise their game towards the end of games,” Ancelotti told reporters after the match. “It was disappointing, it was poor. We have to be critical of ourselves here and do everything we can next week to recover.”
Real have a formidable record of pulling off improbable comebacks, particularly at the Santiago Bernabeu, and have previously overturned a three-goal first-leg deficit – albeit nearly 50 years ago against Derby County in the European Cup.
Ancelotti did not appear to fully believe in Real’s chances in the second leg, but warned Arsenal the tie was not over yet.
“The possibilities (of qualifying) are quite low, but we have to try 100%,” said the Italian gaffer. “We have to do all we can, it’s an opportunity to show a response to a poor game.”
He added: “If you look at the game tonight, there is no possibility. But football changes. Nobody expected that Rice scores two goals from set pieces.
“In football, everything can happen. We need to believe, we need to have trust because, sometimes, a lot of time in the Bernabeu, it happened.”
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