Mikel Arteta praised his team's performance and Rice's two free kicks

"When you haven't played against this team in 20 years and you haven't had a breakthrough in the Champions League, you have to be ready - to write your own history," said Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta after their thrilling 3-0 win over Real Madrid at the Emirates Stadium.

This was the first time Arsenal faced Real Madrid, a legendary team that had won 15 titles, in the Champions League 19 years after they eliminated the club in 2006. The victory at the Emirates Stadium was called "the greatest battle in the 19 years since the stadium was built" by Gunners legend Paul Merson.

After the game, Arteta made no secret of his praise for the team's performance: "It is on nights like this that you can write your own history. This victory came from the overall performance of the players as well as from individual highlights. We still have a lot to offer."

"We will certainly enjoy this victory, but we know very well that this is only the first half. We have to play better in the second leg at the Bernabeu."

Arteta revealed that he was confident in the team's performance before the game: "I'm very sure we can do it. During the preparation, I could feel that we could cause a lot of trouble. But if you really want to make it happen, you must have that mentality and belief-believe that you can, and then take action. We did it, but now the game is not over."

Talking about the key factors of this game, Arteta praised Rice, who rarely scored two direct free kicks in 12 minutes, opening the door to victory for the team and ending Arsenal's drought of free kick goals in the Champions League in the past three and a half years.

Arteta said: "Rice has been working very hard recently. We have said before that the team has not scored a direct free kick in three and a half years. As a result, he scored two in 12 minutes! This is the first time he has scored a direct free kick in his career. How low do you think this probability is?"

"Tonight was about two things: the atmosphere we created 15 minutes before kick-off, which was like nothing I've ever seen, and the individual moments that made the difference. And those two goals from Rice were the perfect example of that."