Arsenal followers brutally taunt Real Madrid with chant mocking rivals as Gunners declare well-known win over LaLiga giants within the Champions League

Real Madrid suffered a great indignity during their 3-0 Champions League defeat by Arsenal when chants of ‘are you Tottenham in disguise’ rang out around the Emirates. 

The European champions were put to the sword by Mikel Arteta‘s men in the first leg of the quarter-final on Tuesday night, as a breathtaking brace of free-kicks from Declan Rice and a clever Mikel Merino finish condemned them to a fifth loss in the competition this term. 

Despite their ongoing injury issues, the Gunners came into the tie as marginal favourites, with Madrid showing frailties domestically and in previous rounds of the European Cup. But they were still expected to resemble the swaggering continental giants that dumped Manchester City out of the competition and prevailed in a full-bloodied derby against Atletico Madrid. 

Instead, Carlo Ancelotti‘s men were reduced to a sorry imitation of their better selves, an depiction that prompted the home support to question the identity of the opposition before them. 

After Merino had notched his seventh goal in 12 games – Arsenal’s third of the night – in unison the Emirates erupted with the chant ‘are you Tottenham in disguise’, a number favoured among the Arsenal support for mocking the intended target and their far less illustrious rivals at the same time. 

On the evidence of Tuesday display, a comparison to Spurs could be seen as rather generous. 

Goals from Declan Rice (right) and Mikel Merino (left) earned Arsenal a famous win at the Emirates

Real Madrid looked a shadow of themselves on Tuesday night and had no answers for Arsenal’s dominance

It is true that Arsenal’s first two goals came from the inspired right boot of Rice, who placed two free-kicks into the corner beyond Thibaut Courtois. But the Gunners were more than good value for their win and, in truth, should have won by an even bigger margin. 

They managed a staggering 11 shots on target, the joint-most shots Madrid have faced on their goal in a Champions League knockout game. 

Madrid ended the night with an xG of 0.50 and didn’t create a single big chance, despite all the pre-match analysis focussing on Arsenal’s weakened defence without the injured Gabriel. 

The 15-time winners and reigning champions’ confidence in overturning the deficit at the Bernabeu next week was evidenced in Ancelotti’s post-match demeanour but their display in north London did nothing to illustrate an ability to score one, let alone three goals unanswered next time around.

The Gunners are now firm favourites to advance to the semi-final where they will meet either Paris Saint-Germain or Aston Villa on their quest to winning their maiden Champions League title.