Declan Rice curled home two superb free kicks to help Arsenal secure a commanding 3-0 victory over defending champions Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal tie. Rice broke the deadlock in the 58th minute at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night, bending a free kick around the Madrid wall and inside the near post, leaving goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois with no chance. With Madrid legend Roberto Carlos watching from the stands, Rice repeated the feat in the 70th minute by curling another spectacular effort into the far top corner. Mikel Merino added a third goal five minutes later to put Arsenal in a strong position to reach the Champions League semifinals for the first time since 2009.

“In the second half, we knew we had to score and to score three was a real positive,” Rice told Prime Sports after the match. “The message from the manager was that we needed to be super convinced that we could come and win this game. As a group of players, we were really convinced that we were out there as a team fighting for each other.”

The clash marked the first meeting between the two European giants since 2006, when Arsenal eliminated Madrid in the round of 16. French forward Kylian Mbappe had the best opportunities for the visitors but was twice denied by Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti acknowledged the impact of Rice’s free kicks: “For 68 minutes, the game was level, and then they hit two fantastic free kicks and the game changed. We did not react as we need to react and they scored another goal and now it will be very difficult but we have to try.”

Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham offered a more critical assessment of his team’s performance: “We were nowhere near it, that’s the fact. Arsenal were really good. I know two of their goals were free kicks but, to be honest, they could have had way more. We were lucky to get away with three.”

The second leg will be played on April 16 at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, with Bellingham remaining optimistic: “If there’s one place where crazy things can happen, it’s our house… We are still alive, we’ve still got 90 minutes of football and anything can happen at the Bernabeu.”