Everybody from the supporters to the players were keen to make themselves known on a monumental night at the Emirates, and William Saliba did so with varying fortunes at either end.
The centre-back did well to stop Vinicius Junior’s cross after a mishit Bukayo Saka pass but was then hit by Thomas Partey’s flicked header on the goalline. The Gunners continued to show intent but Raul Asencio denied Declan Rice’s attempt and Partey’s shot took two deflections on its way to being saved.
Both teams had periods of possession after the quarter-hour mark, and Los Blancos had openings with Vinicius curling an attempt wide before Kylian Mbappé was denied by David Raya having been released behind by Jude Bellingham.
Saka threatened to cause problems with two inviting passes across the six-yard box at the other end, although none of his teammates could latch onto them. When Rice did meet a cross, Thibaut Courtois palmed away his header and was also equal to Gabriel Martinelli’s follow-up.
The Gunners went out on the front foot after the restart, although Asencio rushed out to deny Rice an opportunity.
There was no stopping the midfielder just before the hour mark,though, as Saka was fouled by David Alaba and Rice curled a superb free-kick around Real Madrid’s wall to open the scoring.
The Gunners refused to relent and Courtois was forced to stop Martinelli’s shot before he and David Alaba were required to deny Mikel Merino, conceding a corner that culminated in Bellingham clearing Rice’s shot off the line.
Having never previously scored a free-kick, Rice somehow outdid his first strike just 12 minutes after his first by sensationally picking out the top corner and sending the Emirates into rapturous celebrations.
Those celebrations only grew as Myles Lewis-Skelly laid the ball off for Merino to effortlessly stroke it home with a quarter-hour remaining, as Arsenal recorded an eighth consecutive match unbeaten across all competitions and, more importantly, earned a three-goal advantage heading to the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.
Things then got worse for Real Madrid when Eduardo Camavinga got a second booking for kicking the ball out in the final seconds.
That will sum up Los Blancos’ mood after their third loss in a row inside 90 minutes, although it would be a brave person who completely writes off a club that has progressed from each of their last 12 UCL quarter-finals.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Declan Rice (Arsenal)