Arsenal

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Former Arsenal defender Matt Upson believes Real Madrid are capable of staging a comeback in their Champions League quarter-final second leg tie against Arsenal, despite an "excellent" first leg performance from Mikel Arteta's side which saw them open up a three-goal lead.

"A Real Madrid comeback has been a lot of the chat around this game, hasn't it?" Upson told BBC Radio 5 Live. "At the end of the first leg last week, those were the comments that were coming out straightaway.

"Real Madrid aren't out of this. Even Jude Bellingham was alluding to the fact that the expectation is still on the Real Madrid players in his press conference - and that is because that is the belief this club has.

"Real Madrid have those sorts of players that can turn things around and it will be something that Arsenal will have to cope with.

"I thought Arsenal were excellent in the first leg. They controlled a lot of the game, they had plenty of possession and they limited Real Madrid to a few chances.

"Now whether they can turn up this evening at the Bernabeu and actually bring that same aura, I think that will be the challenge.

"It's about having a plan in your mind, doing the simple things well, maintaining that focus and keeping calm."

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Arsenal's players "want to create our own history" when they face Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final, says goalkeeper David Raya.

The Gunners' impressive display in the first leg means they take a 3-0 lead to the Bernabeu on Wednesday.

Much of the talk from defending champions Real Madrid in the build-up has been about their belief that they can stage a historic comeback to turn the tie around.

However, Raya has insisted the mindset in the Arsenal camp is about their own history as they look to reach the semi-finals of the competition for just the third time.

"We have the momentum, I think. The way we played, the way we faced them in the first leg was incredible from everyone," he said.

"We want to create our own history. Coming here to win the game, that is the most important thing.

"That [noise] is something we can't control. We cant think about that.

"We just have to think about ourselves and what we can control on the pitch - the ball, playing the same way as we did in the first game, creating chances and scoring goals.

"We know we have a lead but we come here to win the game."

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Arsenal have touched down in Madrid for their Champions League quarter-final second leg needing to protect their three-goal lead to seal a spot in the semi-finals against Paris St-Germain.

Mikel Arteta's side are now the only English team left in the competition, after Aston Villa were knocked out by PSG on Tuesday, so all eyes will be on this mouth-watering encounter at the Bernabeu.

If you are one of the lucky 3,875 travelling fans, we want to hear from you about how you're building up to the huge game.

Send us your pictures before a big night in the Spanish capital here

Atletico Madrid are interested in re-signing Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey this summer. (Marca - in Spanish), external

Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe has told the club's board that he wants to keep their best players this summer, including 25-year-old Sweden striker Alexander Isak, who has been linked with Arsenal. (Teamtalk), external

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Alex Howell
BBC Sport football news reporter

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Manager Mikel Arteta and goalkeeper David Raya have spoken to the media before Arsenal's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Real Madrid.

Raya spoke about how Arsenal want to "create their own history" and that the Gunners will go to the Santiago Bernabeu to win the match, even though they have a three-goal lead from the first leg.

That lead is significant as Arsenal have not conceded three goals in a match for 472 days, which was in a Premier League match with Luton - a game that Arsenal won 4-3.

It was a stat that Arteta himself brought up.

There has been talk in the Spanish media about how Real Madrid can use the emotion in the stadium and their success in the competition to complete an unlikely turnaround.

Madrid have won the competition 15 times and Jude Bellingham described the game with Arsenal as a "night made for Madrid".

Arteta said Arsenal do not fear Madrid but he has "respect and admiration for what they have done in the competition over the years".

The Gunners boss was very calm as he took answers in both English and Spanish and that calmness will need to rub off on his players on Wednesday if they are to reach just their third Champions League semi-final in the club's history.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been speaking to the media before Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Real Madrid (kick-off 20:00 BST).

The Gunners won the first leg 3-0 at Emirates Stadium last week.

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• There is "positive news" on defender Ben White, who has trained on Tuesday and will be in the squad. Thomas Partey will also be available, however, Jorginho has not recovered from the injury he picked up in their most recent match.

• On their approach to the game: "To win it. The same as we did in London. Our preparation has been the things we have to do, we have to dominate in different phases to give us the best chance to win the game - that is our mindset and that is what we have to do."

• Arteta said Real Madrid "have the right" to talk about a historic comeback, but his side's scenario is "very different" so their "mindset, preparation and thoughts are on how we are going to have best chance to be better than them in aspects that are crucial".

• On his message to the players of creating their own history: "When you have to create a story, build a story, first you have to excited about it. Be really prepared about it, then really convinced on what you want to achieve, then going step by step. A lot of clubs have built history by doing this many times... last year we had experience and this season we want to be better and apply that and get to the semi-finals for only the third time in history of our football club."

• From the "emotional aspect", the Arsenal boss has "a lot of reassurance" from what his team have done this season to be "convinced we can handle any situation and we are going to enjoy any kind of game that we are thrown".

• On if he senses any nerves from his players before this match: "I think it is excitement. When we talk about creating that history, yes, we have never won the competition and we are trying to do that consistently so we can start to dominate a European competition. But, we have to earn the right tomorrow to do it."

• On whether Declan Rice has been practising his free-kicks after scoring two in the first leg: "Yes he has and if he can create any more of those moments that would be amazing."

• He added: "He is creating the story with us. That moment is going to be in our history for a while. The way he did it, the manner he did it, that he did it twice is very, very rare... I think he is going to have the belief that he can create more of those moments for us."

Listen to live commentary of Real Madrid v Arsenal on BBC Sounds from 20:00 BST on Wednesday

With a 3-0 lead going into Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Real Madrid, Arsenal fan Laura Kirk-Francis tells The Football News Show why she would have been more nervous facing Real Madrid in the past and why this "different" Gunners team should be able to progress.

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Laura Kirk-Francis
Fan writer

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Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Brentford on Saturday had the feeling of the second day of a wedding - still on a high from the night before, but perhaps failing to rally to the same heights again after such a small amount of time.

There will be time to dissect why Arsenal have drawn so many games this season in the Premier League, and why we dominate but do not always kill off teams.

But this is not the time. Right now, it is about the Champions League.

The footage of Declan Rice's wonderful double last week has been slowly scarring itself into the retinas of Arsenal fans everywhere. But with every replay I have watched, and every time I have reminded myself that we actually did beat Real Madrid 3-0, the bad thoughts are starting to creep in.

Nearly a week on and the catastrophising has begun. For reasons I cannot explain, my brain has been on a mission to remind me of every time Arsenal have thrown away a significant lead.

First up it was against Newcastle in 2011, which saw Arsenal concede four second-half goals having been 4-0 up at half-time. Next on this reel of nightmares is the 3-3 against Anderlecht in 2014, followed swiftly by the consecutive games in 2023 where Arsenal gave up 2-0 leads against Liverpool and West Ham respectively.

But this is not the Arsenal of old. This team is different. Even with Gabriel sidelined, our backline is strong. Although Rice's exploits were rightly the centre of attention from the first leg, Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly had the Real Madrid frontline on lockdown for the majority of the second half. There is no reason to believe they cannot do that again, regardless of what intimidation tactics Real Madrid plan to use.

I will be honest though, I will be watching Wednesday's second leg from behind a cushion and even behind my entire sofa. Even at 3-0 up, it is going to be a very long 90 minutes.

Find more from Laura Kirk-Francis at the Latte Firm podcast, external

Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

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Arsenal slipped up again - but their minds were understandably focused more on the Champions League than the Premier League.

If they are going to survive the certain onslaught, as Real Madrid attempt to claw back the three-goal deficit, every player will have to be at their concentrated best.

David Raya's performance will be vital on the night, but the influence of first-leg hero Declan Rice will be key. Having him at his best is like having an extra player on the field.

There is a proud but short list of players who could be named the best midfielder, the best attacker and the best defender on the field all in the same game.

These players include the likes of Bryan Robson, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard - who are loosely termed box-to-box players but were also the total heart and soul of their sides.

With those two brilliant free-kicks against Real Madrid and the wonderful assist against Brentford, he has caught everyone's eye. But the other side of him that doesn't show up on the highlights reels, or indeed on most of the stats charts, has been outstanding.

In the last 25 years, only the aforementioned Keane and Gerrard have been awarded the PFA player of the year by their peers. The gong usually goes to a striker or creator, but I would not argue against Declan Rice getting it this year.

Apart from the ability and the selflessness, I would happily vote for him because of his attitude. He is the perfect professional - an utterly committed team player and a true sportsman in the finest sense.

You will not see him rolling around in feigned agony, whatever the circumstances.

He is a role model for any youngster watching the game and indeed many current top professionals who should know better. He would have my vote and no-one would be more deserving.

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Arsenal have contacted Bayern Munich to enquire about the availability of 28-year-old French winger Kingsley Coman. (Sky Sports), external

Eintracht Frankfurt are demanding a fee of about 100m euros (£86.3m) for 22-year-old striker Hugo Ekitike, amid interest from Arsenal and Tottenham. (Bild - in German), external

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Northern Irish teenager Ceadach O'Neill has signed his first professional contract at Arsenal.

The 17-year-old joined the Gunners from Linfield last summer and has been playing regularly for their under-18 side and has trained with Mikel Arteta's first team.

The winger made his Irish Premiership debut for the Blues as a 15-year-old against Ballymena United in November 2023.

O'Neill has captained Northern Ireland at under-17 level and told Arsenal's club website that he was "delighted" to sign his first professional deal.

"I knew it was going to be a bit of a challenge moving over, but I think I settled in well," he said.

"It's always a surreal moment just being able to be in the same pitch with the first teamers, so I really enjoy growing up with them and learning from them.

"The rest of this season, I just want to finish it off strong, just keep trying to score goals and get assists and carry on into next season."

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We asked for your thoughts after Arsenal's Premier League game against Brentford, which ended as a 1-1 draw.

Here are some of your comments:

Arsenal fans

Guy: I'm not surprised by a lack of victory. Arsenal have been poor all year in the league. Second flatters us. We just don't look like winning these types of matches anymore.

Rachel: Disappointed, but not surprised by the performance. It wasn't easy to choose a standout player, probably Thomas Partey who had a decent match. Lacklustre and below par, seems that this is standard for the time of year. No doubt Real Madrid is looming large on the horizon.

Bola: Lacklustre, uninspiring. Mikel Arteta blew it, he killed the momentum with the first substitutions after Arsenal's goal. Ill-timed, poor judgment.

Tony: The B team were doing so well. I really can't understand why Arteta felt the need to make changes, to bring on the A team. All went downhill from that point and Brentford seized the initiative. Points needlessly thrown away.

Shaun: It's amazing that Arteta hardly ever makes a sub until late in the game when he starts with his strongest 11. Yet against Brentford, he makes three after an hour and surprisingly it's three players who were playing well. We were far better before the subs. Leandro Trossard clearly can't play centrally, and worryingly, Martin Odegaard was very poor again. There was not a lot in the game, but yet again we've failed to secure a win after taking the lead - a total of 16 points now dropped this season.

Brentford fans

Keith: It just shows how far we've come as a club when you can nullify a team like Arsenal for most of the match and only concede on the counter.

Will: This is a point we'd have been happy with any day this season, and I felt like we played well and went toe-to-toe with the Gunners. We didn't have many chances but we found a way. I hope we will see more of Gustavo Nunes and Michael Kayode as I feel like they added a variety we seem to need right now to be creative and undo opponents. A set of very tough matches done, the run in looks promising and I hope we can achieve a top-half finish.

Alex Howell
BBC Sport football news reporter

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Before Liverpool's win over West Ham on Sunday, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admitted that his focus is on Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final 2nd leg in against Real Madrid and conceded his side are 'unlikely' to win the Premier League.

Arteta made five changes to the team that beat Madrid 3-0 last week and his side could only draw 1-1 with Brentford despite taking the lead.

The game was very flat with the first shot on target not coming until the 20th minute and the action left little for the supporters to get excited about.

"I don't know." Arteta said when asked if supporters were thinking about the upcoming game with Madrid.

"The atmosphere was different to Tuesday, that's for sure. I don't know if it was playing in the back of the crowd.

"For us as professionals, we know the importance of that. Today what we wanted to do was increase the probability of us really challenging for what we are looking for in the Premier League.

"With that result, obviously, it's more unlikely to happen."

Midfielder Thomas Partey came off with a knock in the second half and is going to be assessed and midfielder Jorginho also came off late in the game meaning that Arsenal finished the match with ten men.

"We still have six games to play in the Premier League which are going to be really important but for sure now it is all about Wednesday." Arteta said.

Arsenal retain an interest in 19-year-old Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, although any potential deal for the Dutch international this summer is likely to hinge on the future of Jakub Kiwior. (Mirror), external

Meanwhile, the Gunners have no plans to sign on-loan Chelsea and England winger Raheem Sterling on a permanent basis. (Football Insider), external

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Highlights and analysis from Saturday's five Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up now on BBC iPlayer.

Listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Nottingham Forest 0-1 Everton

• Arsenal 1-1 Brentford