LONDON – After a tough 3-0 loss to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, many might think Real Madrid is out of the Champions League. But Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti still has faith in his team`s chances, especially when they play at home at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Arsenal`s coach, Mikel Arteta, also knows that the game isn`t over yet. His players reminded each other that it`s only halftime in the competition. They are happy about their big win, thanks to Declan Rice`s amazing free kicks. However, they understand that their joy could disappear if things go wrong in the second leg in Madrid. They probably agree with Ancelotti that anything is possible.
“Looking at tonight`s game, it seems impossible,” Ancelotti admitted. “But football is unpredictable. Nobody expected Rice to score two free kicks. But he did. In football, anything can happen. And often, something special happens at the Bernabeu.”
In Champions League history, only a few teams have come back from a three-goal loss in the first leg when playing at home. Real Madrid, despite their history of dramatic comebacks, is not one of them. The best they`ve done is overcome a two-goal deficit against Wolfsburg in 2015-16. Also, Real Madrid has yet to score against Arsenal in their three matches.
The game might have been different if Kylian Mbappe had scored in a one-on-one chance against Arsenal`s goalkeeper, David Raya. Arsenal fixed their early mistakes as the game went on, and Ancelotti was not happy that his team didn`t improve as the match progressed.
“It was a very difficult night for us,” Ancelotti said. “We thought we had a strong team going into the game. In the first half, Arsenal was organized. After the two free-kick goals, my team struggled mentally and physically. It was hard to finish the game like that. Usually, this team gets stronger towards the end of games, but not this time. It was a poor performance.”
Arteta`s challenge now is to keep his players focused. But it seems they are already doing that themselves. “They were immediately talking about it being only halftime,” Arteta said. “It`s great to enjoy the win, but now we need to prepare for our next game on Saturday and then get ready for the challenge in Madrid. They are all very excited.”
Arteta and his players didn`t think of themselves as underdogs before the game. They were confident but not overconfident. Anyone watching them prepare for such a big game at the Emirates Stadium would see that they weren`t intimidated by the moment.
“I was very confident because I felt in our preparation that we were ready and believed we could cause Real Madrid problems,” Arteta said. “But then you have to make it happen on the field. Having that mindset and belief makes things possible. We performed well today, but it`s only halftime, and we are very happy.”
