Arsenal created history by becoming the first English team to win more than once at the Bernabeu with a stunning 2-1 victory.
Gabriel Martinelli scored a stoppage time winner during a historic night for the club as they booked their place in the Champions League semi final for the first time since 2009.
Ian Wright praised Declan Rice for his performances across the tie and Wright believed the midfielder ‘wiped the floor’ with the Spanish giants.
Jakub Kiwior was excellent in his role of containing Kylian Mbappe across the two legs but an ex-Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has slammed one Arsenal star for their role in the victory.
READ MORE: Arsenal’s Champions League win over Real Madrid has huge impact on Andrea Berta’s ‘busy’ summer
Rafael Van Der Vaart slams ‘disgrace’ Bukayo Saka
As per Voetbal Primeur, speaking on Dutch television outlet Ziggo Sport, former Spurs midfielder Rafael Van Der Vaart has launched a scathing attack on Bukayo Saka following his penalty miss.
Arsenal fans were shocked by Saka’s attempted ‘Panenka’ style penalty kick in the opening exchanges of the second leg but he made up for the miss with a beautiful opener in the second half.
Van Der Vaart stated: “I think this is total overestimation. In the sense of: I’m going to steal the show here. While this is a very normal player, who has to do his very best every day.
“What he is doing now is just a real disgrace. When Messi does this, we all say: not smart, but he has proven that he can do this. But I think Saka thinks he belongs to the top of the world…”
Bukayo Saka proving Rafael Van Der Vaart wrong
Wright defended Saka when the Gunners star was compared to Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo as being a level below the Real Madrid stars in terms of ability however, Saka was the star of the show across the tie.
Mikel Arteta has lauded Saka for his influence on the Arsenal squad and believes he has something no other player has in being able to do the unpredictable in games.
| Key statistics this season (2024/25) per 90 mins | Saka | Salah | Vinicius Jr |
| Progressive carries | 4.93 | 4.22 | 6.7 |
| Progressive passes | 3.68 | 3.9 | 3.3 |
| Goal creating actions | 1.38 | 0.76 | 0.67 |
| Shots | 3.29 | 3.18 | 3.26 |
Compared to other ‘world class’ wingers in Mohamed Salah and Vinicius Jr, the Hale End star more than holds his own in a number of key areas this season, despite being injured for more than three months.
Saka consistently demonstrates that he is among the world’s best, the character of the player was proven against Real Madrid in how he shrugged off the disappointment of the penalty miss by giving his side the lead.
Perhaps the scary thought for an ex-Spurs man is that Saka is only going to get better in the coming years.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
