Francesco Mauri, Ancelotti's assistant, and Luis Llopis, goalkeeper coach, seemed to be warning Thibaut Courtois and the wall before Declan Rice executed an extraordinary curler that bypassed the Madrid wall and surprised the Belgian. Both members of the coaching staff made gestures with their right arm, warning their players, but it was in vain. The English midfielder nailed the 1-0 and ignited the Emirates, starting its great night against a disastrous Madrid. "It's a tough defeat. We didn't expect it. We have few options, but things happen at the Bernabéu," said Carlo Ancelotti.
In midfield, Camavinga and Modric started together for the fourth time this season. It might seem like they have played more together, but only in three out of the 51 matches of the year had they started together. The trio of appearances had been, like in Alaba's case, almost failing: a match against Leganés in La Liga, where Madrid struggled to win 3-2, the draw in Pamplona against Osasuna, and the defeat at Anfield against Liverpool. The stats didn't bode well, and the result was catastrophic.
The Whites succumbed in the second half to Rice's two direct free-kick goals. The first after a foul by Alaba on Saka, with the Austrian being outplayed by the British winger. And the second, sending the ball to the top corner past Courtois. A stunning goal to knock out Madrid. It was the first direct free-kick goal scored against the Whites away from home in the Champions League since September 2005, when Juninho Pernambucano scored one with Lyon.
The faces on the Madrid bench told a story. Ancelotti didn't have many cards to play. He withdrew Modric and Alaba and brought in Lucas and Fran García while Courtois prevented a bigger failure.
Merino's goal left Madrid reeling. Three goals in 17 minutes. A defeat that joins the 4-0 at the Etihad in 2023, the worst of Ancelotti's era, and the 4-1 in Dortmund in 2013 as the darkest nights for Madrid in continental knockout stages in recent decades.
And to make matters worse, Camavinga was sent off for protesting a foul and will miss the return leg. It's time for heroics. "We're not used to two consecutive defeats, we just have to work, trust in ourselves more than ever, this team deserves confidence from everyone, and we will trust in that," said Lucas Vázquez after the final whistle.
The Galician admitted that "we haven't been good." "Arsenal played a great game, had chances, pressed us well, we had some isolated plays, but in the second half, we didn't step up. We lacked continuity in the game, possession, and in the end, we couldn't put on a good performance," he summarized.
More harsh was Courtois, who admitted that "we forgot to play football." "I wouldn't say we panicked, but we weren't comfortable with the ball," he insisted, explaining the two direct free-kick goals. "In the first one, I thought I had set up the wall correctly. I always place one more man past the ball so that curve doesn't get through. Maybe I should have added one more... In the second one, he couldn't have hit it any better. They are unnecessary fouls where there is no danger, the first one was going wide of the goal, the second one too," he said.
But like Lucas, the Belgian believes in the comeback: "They have to believe in this team, and from the first minute, we will give everything to turn this result around. We have to correct the mistakes and try to score one or two quick goals. I think it's possible."