On Tuesday, April 8, the first matches of the Champions League quarterfinals took place.

Arsenal of London secured a convincing home win against Real Madrid. English midfielder Declan Rice scored a brace, with both goals coming from free kicks. He opened the scoring with a perfect shot in the 58th minute and added a second ten minutes later in a similar fashion. Mikel Merino also found the back of the net.

Remarkably, Rice became the first player to score two free-kick goals in the Champions League knockout stage.

Ukrainian defender Oleksandr Zinchenko remained on the bench for Arsenal, while Real's goalkeeper Andriy Lunin missed the match due to an injury sustained earlier.

In another match, Bayern Munich fell to Inter at their home ground, the Allianz Arena. After Lautaro Martinez's goal in the first half, Bayern equalized through Thomas Muller in the 85th minute, but Inter quickly responded with a goal from Davide Frattesi.

Champions League 2024/25
Quarterfinals, first matches, April 8

Arsenal (London) – Real (Madrid) 3:0 (0:0)

Goals: 1:0 – 58 Rice, 2:0 – 70 Rice, 3:0 – 75 Merino

Red card: Camavinga 90+4 (second yellow)

Bayern (Munich) – Inter (Milan) 1:2 (0:1)

Goals: 0:1 – 38 Martinez, 1:1 – 85 Muller, 1:2 – 88 Frattesi

Return matches will be held on April 16.

On Wednesday, April 9, two more quarterfinal matches are scheduled: PSG will host Aston Villa, while Barcelona will face Borussia Dortmund.