JUDE BELLINGHAM could only watch open-mouthed as England team-mate Declan Rice turned on the style at the Emirates.
The Arsenal midfielder netted TWO stunning free kicks with 12 minutes to put the Gunners in charge of the Champions League quarter-final.
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FOLLOW ALL THE REACTION TO ARSENAL’S WIN ON OUR LIVE BLOG
Rice twice beat Thibaut Courtois with thunderous set-pieces from outside the box.
The goals put Arsenal firmly on top in the tie, with Mikel Merino adding a late third.
Bellingham was a passenger for much of the night in a white-hot atmosphere at the Emirates.
And TV cameras caught his immediate reaction to Rice’s heroics in the second half.
Moments after the £100million-man hit the top corner with his first freekick, Bellingham was spotted looking helplessly towards a stern-faced Carlo Ancelotti on the sideline.
Cameras immediately panned to the England man again after Rice repeated the trick just over 10 minutes later.
Bellingham was seen shaking his head in disbelief, with Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta also clearly in shock on the touchline.
Fans were quick to notice Amazon Prime‘s director panned straight to Bellingham to catch his reaction.
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One fan roared on X: “THE TV DIRECTOR IS A SICKO. THAT PAN TO BELLINGHAM WAS PEAK CINEMA.”
While a second said: “Bellingham’s reaction says it all! You can’t help but respect a beauty like that from Rice.”
And a third laughed: “The double pan to Bellingham after the goals. Absolute cinema.”
Arsenal fans could barely believe it as the Champions League holders wilted in North London.
And they even serenaded Madrid with chants of “Are you Tottenham in disguise?”.
Rice was subbed off with ten minutes to go and replaced by Kieran Tierney.
He becomes the FIRST player ever to score 2 goals from direct free kicks in a Champions League knockout stage match.
Rice also bagged his first-ever brace for Arsenal since joining from West Ham in 2023.
Arsenal ratings vs Real Madrid as Declan Rice’s free-kick thunderbolts earn him an ELEVEN out of 10
BEND it like Beckham? More like bend it like Declan…
It was a set-piece clinic from the Arsenal midfielder as he scored the first free-kicks of his career against Real Madrid – and the first player in Champions League history to score multiple direct free-kicks in the same knockout stage game.
Thibaut Courtois was on hand to save Real Madrid in a fast paced first half as he pulled off a fine double save to deny a Rice header and a follow-up effort from Gabriel Martinelli.
The deadlock was finally broken in the 58th minute as England star Rice whipped in a sensational free-kick.
Rice then sent the Emirates into the stratosphere with as he added a second with an even better free-kick from the left side of the goal which he rifled into the top right corner.
Mikel Merino then swept a devastating third into the bottom corner from a low cross to put the cherry on a remarkable night.
Rice’s epic showing was enough to earn him an unprecedented ELEVEN in our player ratings.
Here’s how SunSport’s Jordan Davies rated the rest of the Gunners…
