Declan Rice starred as Arsenal took control of their Champions League quarter-final tie against Real Madrid on Tuesday night with an impressive 3-0 win at the Emirates.
Mikel Arteta’s side went into the fixture as underdogs, considering they have not reached the final four since 2009, and Real Madrid are the current holders and 15-time winners.
However, two magic free-kicks from Declan Rice in the second half and a third goal from in-form Mikel Merino put them in a commanding position for the second leg at the Bernabeu. Rice’s brilliant brace has stolen the headlines, particularly as he had never scored a free-kick in his professional career.
However, one Gunners fan thinks they saw the signs before kickoff – and the stats demonstrate how much his finishing is improving.
Declan Rice was hitting top bins every shot warming up
Just over 15 minutes before kickoff on Tuesday night, one fan had an observation that became eerily relevant in the match.
On X, the supporter wrote: “Rice is hitting screamers in the warm-up. Top corner every time.”
That turned out to be just how he’d put Arsenal ahead. After having a header saved and a close-range effort blocked in the first half, the midfielder clearly decided he might as well try his luck from range. His first free-kick in the 58th minute swerved around the wall and out of Thibaut Courtois’ reach, and his second in the 70th was even better.
Though Madrid must have been wary of his abilities, they still couldn’t do anything to prevent his strike from looping over the wall and perfectly into the top corner. His extraordinary double drew praise from other England stars online.
Rice has always been capable of goals, but his stats demonstrate that the quality and difficulty of the ones he scores is improving. Over the past few seasons, the midfielder has been scoring from further out and from more difficult situations.
| Average xG | Average shot distance | |
| 2021/22 | 0.26 | 17.5 |
| 2022/23 | 0.11 | 14.8 |
| 2023/24 | 0.08 | 17.1 |
| 2024/25 | 0.08 | 19.2 |
Tuesday night’s tie, though, was another milestone for him as he scored the first direct free-kicks of his professional career. Incredibly, it was also the first time any player has scored two direct free-kicks in a Champions League knockout match.
Mikel Arteta’s decision to move Rice further up has made him more productive this season, but the midfielder himself was still taken aback by his goals.
“I think I’ll be up watching it all night… I can’t believe it” – Rice
Speaking to Arsenal’s website after the match, Rice was still in disbelief.
“I’m speechless, this has never happened to me before!
“To be honest with you, I’m not used to all of this praise and media and just people saying how good the free-kicks were! I’ve seen them back a few times now but I think I’ll be up watching it all night. It’s an incredible moment, I can’t believe it.”
The midfielder went even further, adding: “This is probably up there with the best moment in my career in terms of the goals I’ve scored. I think the free kick is probably the best goal I’ve scored.”