Real Madrid vs Arsenal Champions League referee confirmed as bad omen emerges

Arsenal are busy looking ahead to their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid, and now the referee has been confirmed for the fixture.

The Gunners will have a 3-0 lead going into the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night. A Declan Rice brace was supported by a goal from Mikel Merino to hand Arsenal a three-goal lead for their trip to the Spanish capital in midweek.

Mikel Arteta's side are just 90 minutes away from reaching the Champions League semi-final, where they would face either Paris Saint-Germain or Aston Villa.

However, the Gunners still have to navigate the quarter-final second leg against Madrid, and now the referee has been confirmed for the fixture.

Francois Letexier will be the referee for the game at the Santiago Bernabeu between Arsenal and Madrid. This will be the first time that Letexier has taken charge of a fixture involving the Gunners, but that is not the case for the Spanish giants.

Letexier has previously refereed four Madrid matches, the most recent being their 2-0 defeat to Liverpool in the league phase of the Champions League back in November.

The 35-year-old was also the referee for the 3-3 draw between Madrid and Manchester City last season in the quarter-final, as well as wins over Napoli and Chelsea over the last two years.

Away from the Champions League, Letexier was also given the honour of refereeing the Euro 2024 final between England and Spain last summer.

That match saw the Three Lions fall to a 2-1 defeat, and Arsenal will be hoping to avoid a similar result when they face Madrid on Wednesday night.

Arsenal will go into the game against Madrid on the back of a 1-1 draw with Brentford in the Premier League at the weekend.

Madrid claimed a 1-0 win over Alaves in La Liga on Sunday night as the two teams prepare to go head-to-head in the Spanish capital on midweek for a spot in the Champions League semi-final.

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