Arsenal reached the semi-finals again after many years, Arteta: Maybe it was the most exciting night in my coaching career

In the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Arsenal beat the defending champion Real Madrid 2-1 away and advanced with a total score of 5-1, creating another glorious moment in the team's history. After the game, coach Arteta revealed that he specifically called his mentor Guardiola on the morning of the game to seek encouragement. He said: "If I can stand here, Guardiola has made an indelible contribution."

In this game, Saka opened the scoring and Martinelli sealed the victory in injury time, completely shattering Real Madrid's fantasy of a "comeback". Although Bellingham shouted "We believe we can turn the tables" before the game, the night at the Bernabeu ultimately belonged to the Gunners.

Arteta said after the game: "This may be the most exciting night in my coaching career. Not only because we have reached the semi-finals again after many years (the third time in team history), but also because we have accomplished this feat under such difficult circumstances-the lineup has been injured, playing away, and facing the team with the most honors in this tournament."

"The players showed great character and resilience, and it made me realize that the feeling we had was right - before the game started, I felt a sense of 'we are ready' from them."

This was Arteta's first time standing on the visiting team's bench at the Bernabeu as head coach. He said with emotion: "This is a shocking venue. I realized three minutes into the game that anything can happen here. They are good at creating chaos and belief, and it is difficult to really control the rhythm of the game."

"But the maturity of our players was great and they took control of the game in this stadium, which was a huge step forward."

Talking about the call with Guardiola before the game, Arteta said emotionally: "I called him this morning because he has contributed to everything I have achieved now. He has always been a source of inspiration for me. The four years I worked with him at Manchester City were very precious. Without him, I would not be where I am today."

Looking ahead to the upcoming semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain, Arteta stressed the team's ambition: "This is the third time in our history that we have reached the semi-finals and we must build on this. We are a young and hungry team and every experience will help us become stronger."

"We all believed we could beat Real Madrid and take control of the game at the Bernabeu, and now we have done it."