'Real Madrid will eat you alive but they can be beat'

Robert Pires, creative genius of Arsenal’s Invincibles’, chats to Dani Gill about his hopes for Arteta’s men and why he couldn’t talk to Arsene Wenger after that 2006 loss to Barca

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Declan Rice’s brilliance last week at the Emirates Stadium has allowed Arsenal to dream big. With Real Madrid on the ropes, Mikel Arteta’s team have one foot in the Champions League semi-finals. While caution is urged in the dressing room, it’s impossible to contain the euphoria outside.

Fans, pundits, and club legends are confident they can finish the job. “If Arsenal manage to beat Real Madrid, anything can happen,” Robert Pires, an “Invincible” during his time in north London, says in an exclusive interview with The Independent.

The former Arsenal winger from the early 2000s sees this team as capable of winning the Champions League, although the road ahead is still long and complicated: “Knowing what it takes to win this title helps you do it again – and Arsenal don’t have that yet. In that sense, other clubs have an advantage, but nothing is impossible.”

Despite the commanding 3-0 in the first leg, no one dares to write off a Real Madrid side that is an expert in miraculous comebacks and magical nights at their intimidating Santiago Bernabeu. Nevertheless, if there’s a club that knows what it’s like to win there, this is Arsenal. Back in 2006, Thierry Henry led a historic victory in the Champions League round of 16.

“No one is invincible – not even Real Madrid. It’s a club that has something magical in this competition, a special love affair, which is why they’ve won it 15 times. But we showed 19 years ago that they can be beaten with hard work,” recalls Pires, speaking after playing at the EA7 World Legends Padel Tour in Paris.