Real Madrid 1-2 (1-5 agg) Arsenal: Player ratings from Gunners' victory at the Bernabeu

Bukayo Saka missed a penalty, but he and Gabriel Martinelli later slotted in the decisive goals to ease Arsenal into the last four of the UEFA Champions League, despite Vinicius Junior getting on the scoresheet for Real Madrid.

Saka fluffing his lines preceded VAR overturning a penalty claim for Los Blancos when Kylian Mbappe dived at the feet of Declan Rice. The technology doing the Gunners a rare favour was the highlight from a dull first half. Too many stop-starts robbed fans of a spectacle, but perfectly suited Arsenal's purposes.

This was an exercise in stubborn defending and manipulating the clock. In other words, the kind of bus-parking expertise the Gunners lacked for years at difficult venues and in Europe's premier club competition.

Fortunately, playing not to lose is the default setting under Mikel Arteta. He'll have been pleased to see central defenderJakub Kiwior stand tall and keep his composure against top-level opposition, but Saliba's 67th-minute brain-fart to let Vinicius in was infuriating.

Saliba had looked secure because he enjoyed solid protection courtesy of another solid display from Thomas Partey. Arsenal's muscle man in midfield secured the engine room and allowed Declan Rice, the hero of the first leg, to once again out-energy Real.

Arteta's team needed strong lines at all three levels of the pitch, and the attacking trio was lively, despite Saka seeing his Panenka rejected by Thibaut Courtois. Saka eventually put the tie on ice, while fellow forwards Martinelli and Mikel Merino combined to give it an exclamation point and set up a tie against a precocious Paris Saint-Germain team.

Player ratings from Arsenal's 2-1 win away to Real Madrid

Goalkeeper & Defenders

David Raya (GK) - 7/10 - He wasn't worked as much as he might have expected, but David Raya did what he needed to do well. A booking for delaying the restart, prompted as much by the baying Bernabeu faithful as Raya's lethargy, was the only blot on the Spaniard's copybook.

Jurrien Timber (RB) - 7.6/10 - It was always going to be a busy night for Timber based on the hosts' strength on the flanks, but he acquitted himself competently. The Dutchman often found himself up against Vinicius Jr. and while Real's main man found the net, Timber wasn't at fault.

William Saliba (CB) - 6/10 - Saliba usually sets high standards, so his mistakes are magnified. This one was a doozy. A slack and sluggish lapse, or moment of madness if you prefer, that allowed the most potent threat for the home side to steal in and gratefully accept a gift-wrapped goal.

Two things were frustrating about Saliba's mistake. He was playing so well before it, and gaffes are becoming increasingly common in the Frenchman's game. There's a touch of Rio Ferdinand about Saliba. He's strong and classy when on form, but always prone to a sudden calamity.

Jakub Kiwior (CB) - 8/10 - Fortunately, Saliba's latest gaffe wasn't compounded because fellow centre-back Jakub Kiwior again impressed. The Poland international played above himself in the first leg to ensure inspirational leader Gabriel Magalhaes wasn't missed, and Kiwior was every bit as confident and capable in the Spanish capital.

Kiwior's recent performances prove there are few things more valuable in the sport than a trusted deputy who can be counted on to deliver in case of emergency.

Myles Lewis-Skelly (LB) - 7.5/10 - Somehow surviving getting gut stomped by Antonio Rudiger proved Myles Lewis-Skelly doesn't break easy. In fact, the 18-year-old continues to play beyond his years by rarely showing fear and trusting in his own athletic prowess and natural technical ability.

It felt as though it would take an age for Arsenal to unleash another academy product as gifted as Saka, but Lews-Skelly is already something special.

Continued on the next slide...