Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice declared the club is on course for “special things” after a 2-1 win over Real Madrid at the Bernabeu sealed a 5-1 aggregate victory and a place in the Uefa Champions League semi-finals.
Rice, who was named man of the match, played a central role as goals from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli capped a dominant display in the Spanish capital. The result sends the Gunners into their first Champions League semi-final since 2009, where they will face Paris Saint-Germain.
“It’s such a special night for this club,” Rice told TNT Sports. “It’s a historic night. There was a lot of talk coming here about them coming back because they’ve done it so many times before. But we had so much belief and confidence from that first leg that we could come here and win.”
The England international, who joined from West Ham in a £105 million move last summer, scored two free kicks in the first leg that set Arsenal on course to eliminate the defending European champions.
“There’s something special happening here. This club is going to do special things in the coming years,” Rice added. “We all fully believe in it, we have full trust in this manager – he’s unbelievable.”
Arsenal survived an early scare when Rice was penalised for a foul on Kylian Mbappe in the box, but the decision was overturned after a lengthy VAR check, and a yellow card that would have ruled him out of the semi-final first leg was rescinded.
“I knew it wasn’t a penalty,” said Rice. “He just fell to the floor.”
Ancelotti accepts he may be replaced
Carlo Ancelotti accepted Real Madrid may look to replace him as coach after Arsenal knocked out the Champions League holders.
The Italian could only watch disconsolately as Arsenal progressed to the last four 5-1 on aggregate.
Real Madrid suffered their 12th defeat of the season, by contrast to just two across the whole of the previous campaign.
"It could be that the club decide to change [coach], it could be this year – or the next when my contract expires, there's no problem," Ancelotti told reporters.
"The day that I leave here I can only thank the club.
"It could be tomorrow, in 10 days, in a month or a year, but all I can do will be to thank the club – if my contract's up or not, I don't care."
Madrid have been linked with Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso, who played for Los Blancos, and former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
Ancelotti said his team were still in the fight for La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Club World Cup this summer.
"The team gave everything in terms of attitude, but we weren't able to do it," said Ancelotti after the Arsenal defeat.
"To be honest Arsenal defended very well, we found it hard to find space, in terms of intensity we were better but it was not enough."
Inter remain on course for treble
In Milan, Benjamin Pavard’s second-half header helped Inter Milan book their place in the last four with a 4-3 aggregate victory over Bayern Munich. The France international powered in the decisive goal in the 61st minute at a rain-soaked San Siro to eliminate the German champions.
“We’re not putting any limits on how far we can go,” said Pavard. “We have a great squad with really good players and a great staff. There’s no limit – we want to win and we want to go through.”
Inter will now face Barcelona in the sem-ifinals as they chase a historic treble, with Simone Inzaghi’s side also leading Serie A and still in contention in the Coppa Italia.
France forward Marcus Thuram admitted the team had emptied the tank in a high-intensity contest. “We’re all a bit dead,” he said. “It was a tough night, but we did what we had to do.”
For Bayern, the defeat ends hopes of a Champions League final on home soil in Munich.
“I gave everything, we gave everything,” said veteran forward Thomas Muller. “We played against the best team in Italy. The fans saw we fought and showed a lot of energy. It’s a pity for us because the final was in Munich, but the Champions League is not a picnic.”
