On a night that will be etched into Arsenal folklore, Declan Rice – not previously known for his prowess from set-pieces – delivered a pair of stunning free kicks to leave holders Real Madrid reeling and the Gunners with one foot in the semi-finals of the Uefa Champions League.
A 3-0 win over the 15-time European champions at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday defied all pre-match predictions and placed Mikel Arteta’s men firmly in command ahead of next week’s second leg at the Bernabeu.
In his 339th career appearance, Rice finally opened his free-kick account in emphatic fashion – and did so twice, against one of the world’s best goalkeepers in Thibaut Courtois. Arsenal, meanwhile, ended a barren run of nearly four years without scoring from a direct free kick, a statistic not lost on Arteta.
“To do it twice, in 12 minutes, against a team like Real and a goalkeeper like Courtois – what are the odds?” said the Arsenal manager. “It’s amazing. It speaks to the mentality and execution of Declan.”
The England midfielder’s brace came in a breathless second-half period that saw Arsenal, fuelled by a white-hot home crowd, overwhelm their Spanish visitors. Mikel Merino added a third to cap a dominant performance and put Arsenal within touching distance of their first Champions League semi-final since 2009.
Few gave Arteta’s side much of a chance before kick off. Now, they head to the Spanish capital as favourites – not just to advance, but perhaps to dream even bigger.
“I’ve never seen the stadium like this,” Arteta said. “You need those big European nights, the atmosphere, the magic moments – that’s the beauty of football.”
Real Madrid, for all their European pedigree, now face a mountain they have never scaled: overturning a three-goal deficit in the knockout stages of the Champions League. But Carlo Ancelotti, the competition’s most decorated manager, has not thrown in the towel.
“There is always a first time,” Ancelotti said. “The odds are against us, but the comeback starts tonight. We must give everything.”
Inter Milan seized a narrow but significant 2-1 advantage against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena, with substitute Davide Frattesi striking late to puncture the hosts’ hopes and consign them to their first home Champions League defeat since 2021.
Marcus Thuram’s deft back-heel set up Lautaro Martinez to give the visitors the lead before Bayern stalwart Thomas Muller, days after announcing he would leave the club after 25 years, levelled with five minutes to play. But Inter’s response was immediate, Frattesi latching onto a Carlos Augusto cross to seal a memorable win.
For Bayern, undermanned and out of rhythm, it was a night of frustration. “We had good moments,” said manager Vincent Kompany. “Now it’s about winning in Milan – and we believe we can.”
But for Arsenal and Inter, the script could not have been written better. Both took decisive steps toward the last four – with the added bonus of delivering performances worthy of the occasion.
COMPANY PROFILE
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French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
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Points about the fast fashion industry Celine Hajjar wants everyone to know
- Fast fashion is responsible for up to 10 per cent of global carbon emissions
- Fast fashion is responsible for 24 per cent of the world's insecticides
- Synthetic fibres that make up the average garment can take hundreds of years to biodegrade
- Fast fashion labour workers make 80 per cent less than the required salary to live
- 27 million fast fashion workers worldwide suffer from work-related illnesses and diseases
- Hundreds of thousands of fast fashion labourers work without rights or protection and 80 per cent of them are women
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
