Arsenal hero Rice unsure if Madrid double will ever sink in

Declan Rice is unsure if his two free-kick goals against Real Madrid will ever sink in, having put Arsenal on the brink of the Champions League semi-finals.

Rice found the top-right corner with two dead-ball attempts in the second half, then Mikel Merino added another goal as Arsenal won Tuesday's quarter-final first leg 3-0.

He became the first player in Champions League history to score two direct free-kick goals in a knockout-stage match, while it was just the fifth time overall a player had scored more than one in the same game (also Cristiano Ronaldo, Hakim Ziyech, Neymar and Rivaldo).

Only three Arsenal players had previously scored a direct free-kick in the Champions League – Alberto Mendez, Thierry Henry on three occasions, and Bukayo Saka.

Speaking to Amazon Prime after the match, Rice said: "I don't know whether it will ever sink in. I've gone back to my phone and it's gone crazy!

"To score my first free-kick in a game like this was special. Then, when I got the second one, I just had the confidence. I'm speechless really. To beat Real Madrid in this competition; it's a big night for us."

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Rice revealed he was originally going to cross the ball from the first free-kick, on the advice of set-piece coach Nicolas Jover.

The England international said: "We were saying to cross it. When the wall was over a little bit, we saw the space and Bukayo said: 'if you feel it, go for it'.

"I thought: 'I'm going to take this'. When you score a goal, it's the best feeling in the world. It didn't make sense from that angle to cross the ball. It would have to be a delicate pass. I'm happy I took it because it was magic."

Despite Jover being seen making a whipping gesture ahead of the free-kick, Arteta was happy to let him take the credit for the goal.

"He can claim it if he wants, it doesn't matter," the Gunners boss said. "It's incredible! If there's a player who can do it, with how clean he strikes it, it's Declan.

"But you have to execute it at the highest level, against one of the best keepers in the world. It's amazing."

Madrid have never come back from three goals down to win a Champions League tie, but Rice will not take anything for granted ahead of going to the Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg next Wednesday.

"As the manager just said, even if we're 3-0 up, the individual quality they have is scary," he added. "At the Bernabeu, special things happen for them. We want to be in the Champions League semi-finals."