Every word from Arteta's post-Real Madrid presser

After seeing us put in an incredible display to beat Real Madrid 3-0 at Emirates Stadium in the first leg of our Champions League quarter-final, Mikel Arteta tackled questions from the media in his post-match press conference.

He was asked about how we managed to overturn the European champions, Declan Rice's incredible display, and the state of play heading into the second leg.

Here is everything he had to say:

on tonight’s performance:

I'm very proud, we had a very complete and big performance collectively and you need that in the organisation and what we had to do to dominate the game and to create Madrid problems. This night is about all two factors, one is the atmosphere that we created 15 minutes before kick-off is something I haven't seen before, so playing with that energy, with that commitment with your crowd makes a huge difference. And then magic moments, individual moments that decide all matches and the first two goals of Declan sums up the night.

on Rice’s success from free-kicks:

He's been very determined because we have talked in the last few months that we haven't scored a direct free-kick since September 2021, Burnley away, Martin Odegaard. So it's been a long time, and to score two goals in 12 minutes of that magnitude of that quality from the same player, a player that has never scored a free-kick before in his career, I mean, what are the odds? He's done it tonight. I'm a big believer that the crowd played something with the energy that they put in and it helped us massively in the game.

on everything coming together on and off the pitch:

I was very convinced because I could sense in the preparation that we were really at it, that we had that belief and that trust that we could create Madrid a lot of problems. But then it was the theme of the game, make it happen, then you have to make it happen. But you have that mindset and that belief that things can happen and we delivered today. It was a hard time, but we are very happy.

on why Saka and Rice were subbed:

I think Dec had an issue with his foot, I don't know if it was a tackle or what it was, and Bukayo was after he got tackled on the foul, I think he had a knock and he had to go.

on Lewis-Skelly performing on the biggest stage:

Collectively when you play the way we played and have the performance that we had, you need individuals at the highest level and I think they all took the game to a different level, the individual performance to the standard that is required to beat this incredible team. So, I'm very happy, now it's about consistency.

on Mikel Merino scoring again:

It's been a season that we have to adapt. We went through a lot of things, we lost probably our best defender as well for four months, and Jakub comes in and he delivers the performances that he's delivering. It's not a coincidence the way they train, the way they apply themselves, and the way they help each other I think produces those moments, and with Mikel it's again his commitment, his desire to learn the position, to constantly be thinking of what he can offer to the team, and the team adapting to his qualities to try to deliver the best outcome.

on breaking down a team like Real Madrid:

Yeah, but especially that it wasn’t about us. My feeling was that the team was super convinced, and we had the trust that we could do it because we've done it for big periods against the best opposition that you can face in football for two years. And if you can do that, you can do it on the day, and especially with our crowds. At that level, I think it elevates the level of the team, and we have managed to beat them.

on reaching this level against Real Madrid:

You have to continue to make steps, and tonight we have won in the right direction. Now it’s half-time, and now we have to go to the Bernabeu and we're going to have to elevate the level again to be the team that we want to be there, and to prepare the game to win it.

on the broader significance of tonight’s victory:

I know how much work and how many decisions a lot of people have made in this football club, to live the night that we had tonight. I told them, thank you so much for making us enjoy the journey, to come here, and thank you, for me feeling so convinced that tonight we're going to do it, and we're going to make it happen. It was a genuine feeling because I think we are prepared to do that, and now we have to go to the Bernabeu and do it, and that will be another step.

on the build-up to this game following Saturday’s result:

A completely different game, two different worlds of football and demands from the opposition, and you could sense they've been waiting for this game. The moment that we got the draw, there isn't a team or a club that is going to motivate you for the right reasons, because they changed the history of the competition, and they are the best team by far in the competition, and our challenge and opportunity was to face them and try to beat them.

on taking this momentum into the second leg:

We're going to enjoy the win, because we feel we deserve to do that, but we know it's just half-time, and we're going to have to be even better in Madrid to go through.

on keeping the focus ahead of the away leg:

They were talking about it immediately. You know, great, enjoy it, and now let's prepare for Saturday very well, and then we'll have the time to prepare for the next challenge in Madrid. But they are all very excited.

on what message tonight’s win sends to the rest of Europe:

No, because we have our time, and we are just, again, in the middle of it, at half-time, however you want to call it. There is still so much to do here.

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