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Arsenal legend Ian Wright recently shared the text message he received from Declan Rice after his free-kick brace against Real Madrid on April 8. The Gunners won 3-0 against Los Blancos in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg at the Emirates.
English midfielder Declan Rice delivered an excellent performance in the first leg, scoring twice from the free-kick spot (58' and 70'). Mikel Merino scored a third one (75') to seal the win against Real Madrid. Both of Rice's shots were compared to some of the legendary Lionel Messi's best free-kicks, including the one against Liverpool in the 2019 UCL semi-final.
The Englishman had never previously scored a free-kick in his career despite having 13 shot attempts, per TBR Football. Rice was named the man of the match against Los Blancos for his exceptional display.
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During a conversation on Wrighty’s House Podcast, former Arsenal man Ian Wright shared a message he received from Declan Rice after the quarter-final game against Real Madrid. He said (via TBR Football):
"Honestly, the second one, I don’t know what to, I don’t even know what to say about the second one because that’s the one where it’s just in the top corner. Couldn’t get any further in the top corner if the ball was square."
Speaking further about the text he wrote to Rice, Wright continued:
"I sent it to Dec this morning. He sent me back saying, ‘let’s go’. He sent me back, let’s go because like, you know what? It couldn’t have happened to just a better guy. He’s just honestly, I’m just so happy."
In the current season, Declan Rice has contributed seven goals and eight assists in 43 outings across competitions for the Gunners.
Arsenal will be key contenders to win their first Champions League title this season, if they can hold up the same performance in the upcoming second leg (April 16).
Rio Ferdinand predicts Real Madrid will not be able to win the tie against Arsenal in the Champions League second leg
In a conversation on his Rio Ferdinand Podcast, the Manchester United legend boldly predicted that Real Madrid would not be able to win the UCL quarter-final tie against Arsenal. He said (via YouTube):
"I don’t think Madrid can win this tie. Given that they don’t keep clean sheets, that’s a massive red flag for me. So I believe that Madrid have to score five goals to win this game. They need four to draw this and get to penalties [in my opinion]. I don’t think it’s doable. Arsenal [will] definitely score [at the Bernabeu]."
The second leg will indeed be a difficult game for Los Blancos as they have to score at least four goals to get to the semi-finals. Further, they will also be desperate to maintain a clean sheet at the Bernabeu.
However, Real Madrid are known for their insane comebacks. Some examples include their 5-4 aggregate comeback against Chelsea in the 2022 UCL quarter-finals and the 4-3 aggregate return against Bayern Munich in the UCL semi-finals last season. They went on to win the title both times.
