MADRID: Arsenal staved off Champions League holders Real Madrid’s superstars and rich history of unlikely comebacks to snatch a 2-1 victory on Wednesday and reach the semifinals with a superb 5-1 aggregate triumph.
The Gunners’ 3-0 quarter-final first leg triumph last week gave them a vital cushion in the Spanish capital as they made the final four for the first time since 2009, where they will face Paris Saint-Germain.
Bukayo Saka, who missed a first-half penalty, sent Arsenal ahead and although Vinicius Junior levelled the 15-time winners were never close to making up the deficit.
Gabriel Martinelli rubbed salt in their wounds with a stoppage-time winner for Arsenal, who have never lifted the Champions League trophy.
Los Blancos, far more brittle than when they won a Champions League and La Liga double last season, were convinced they could turn the game around but created too little against Arsenal’s tight defense.
The Premier League side held their nerve to reach the semifinals for only the third time in their history.
Kylian Mbappe chested home in the opening stages but was clearly offside, with the forward gesturing to the crowd to turn up the volume to create the fabled aura which helps Madrid pull off near-impossible feats at the Santiago Bernabeu.
David Alaba was booked for hacking down Saka as Madrid tried to add the grit they badly lacked in their first leg demolition in London, and the Arsenal winger also had a drive fielded well by Thibaut Courtois.
Arsenal were awarded a penalty seemingly out of the blue when the VAR booth instructed French referee Francois Letexier to review an incident from an earlier corner.
Raul Asencio pulled back Arsenal forward Mikel Merino in the area and Letexier pointed to the spot, to the bemusement of the home crowd.
Saka stepped up to take it but his poorly-executed Panenka, skewing off to the left, was saved by Courtois.
It spurred Real Madrid on and soon they had a penalty of their own, when Mbappe hit the turf after Declan Rice tussled with him.
However after a lengthy VAR review Letexier was called to take a second look and he then decided Arsenal’s two-goal first leg hero Rice had not fouled the French superstar.
The breaks in play, along with Arsenal’s dallying at every opportunity, disrupted Madrid’s momentum and they struggled to threaten Gunners stopper David Raya.
For all of Madrid’s bluster the goalkeeper did not need to make a save in the first half, while Courtois stopped three shots, including a Martinelli effort from a tight angle in added time, of which there was plenty after the VAR reviews.
On the hour mark Carlo Ancelotti took action with a triple change, including replacing the quiet Rodrygo with teen starlet Endrick, and bringing on Dani Ceballos against his former side.
Martin Odegaard, also facing his former employers whom he joined as a ‘wonderkid’ a decade ago, helped forge Arsenal’s opening goal after 65 minutes.
The Norwegian linked with Merino, who slipped Saka in behind and the Englishman made amends for his penalty blunder with an ice-cool dinked finish.
Four goals ahead in the tie Arsenal thought their work was done, with defender William Saliba not concentrating on the edge of his box in possession.
Vinicius stole the ball away from him and beat the out-of-position Raya to level, two minutes after Saka’s opener.
Madrid’s increasingly slim hopes were dashed when Mbappe limped off with an ankle problem with 15 minutes remaining, and Martinelli made sure with a cool finish after Merino set him up.

TEHRAN: Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Wednesday that Iran’s enrichment of uranium as part of its nuclear program was “non-negotiable” after US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff called for a halt.

“Iran’s enrichment is a real, accepted matter. We are ready to build confidence in response to possible concerns, but the issue of enrichment is non-negotiable,” Araghchi told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

The remarks came as Araghchi and Witkoff are due to meet again in Oman on Saturday, a week after they held the highest-level talks between the longtime foes since US President Donald Trump abandoned a landmark nuclear deal in 2018.

Trump reimposed sweeping sanctions in a policy of “maximum pressure” against Tehran that he has reinstated since returning to office in January.

In March, he sent a letter to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urging talks but warning of possible military action if they fail to produce a deal.

Both sides described Saturday’s meeting as “constructive.”

But on Tuesday, Witkoff said Iran must “stop and eliminate” its enrichment of uranium as part of any nuclear deal.

He had previously demanded only that Iran return to the 3.67 percent enrichment ceiling set by the 2015 accord between Iran and major powers that Trump withdrew from.

Araghchi condemned what he called the “contradictory and conflicting positions” coming out of the Trump administration ahead of Saturday’s talks.

“We will find out the true opinions of the Americans during the negotiation session,” he said.

Iran’s top diplomat said he hoped to start negotiations on the framework of a possible agreement but said that required “constructive positions” from the US.

“If we continue to (hear) contradictory and conflicting positions, we are going to have problems,” he warned.

Araghchi is set to head to Iranian ally Russia on Thursday, Iran’s ambassador in Moscow Kazem Jalili said.

Iran has said the visit was “pre-planned” but will include discussions on the Iran-US talks.

“The objective of (my) trip to Russia is to convey a written message from the supreme leader” to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Araghchi said.

In readiness for the US talks, Iran has engaged with Russia and China, which were both parties to the 2015 deal.

Ahead of Saturday’s second round of talks in Muscat, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he hoped a deal could be reached with the US, the official IRNA news agency reported.

On Tuesday, Khamenei cautioned that while the talks have proceeded well in their early stages, they could still prove fruitless.

“The negotiations may or may not yield results,” he said, noting that Iran had already outlined its “red lines.”

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have said the country’s military capabilities are off-limits in the talks.

Late on Sunday, IRNA said Iran’s regional influence and its missile capabilities — both sources of concern for Western governments — were also among its “red lines.”

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi was due in Iran later Wednesday for talks with senior officials.

The UN watchdog was tasked with overseeing Iran’s compliance with the 2015 nulear deal.

In its latest report, the IAEA said Iran had an estimated 274.8 kilograms of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent.

That level far exceeds the the 3.67 percent ceiling set by the 2015 deal but still falls short of the 90 percent threshold required for a nuclear warhead.