Real Madrid and 'fantastic failure' Mbappe ripped apart by Spanish press after Arsenal humbling

Kylian Mbappe andhave come under scathing criticism from Spanish media, being labelled a "fantastic failure" after their thrashing by .

Despite holding out hope for a historic turnaround following a 3-0 loss at the Emirates in the first leg of their quarter-final clash, the reigning champions at home in the Bernabeu on Wednesday night.

The Gunners outclassed Los Blancos once again with contributing to a comfortable 5-1 aggregate victory. Real Madrid's performance was so poor that even Saka’s missed penalty and William Saliba gifting a goal to Vinicius Junior did not change the course of the tie.

’s Arsenal, meanwhile, impressed, restricting Carlo Ancelotti's men to only three shots on target on the night while having just a third of possession. It only further highlighted Real Madrid's ongoing issue of not being able to find synergy amongst their star-studded front line, which includes Rodrygo, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius, and Mbappe.

And after exiting their trademarked competition with a whimper, the 15-time winners were torn into by the Spanish press. Diario AS didn't hold back, using phrases like "it was just a dream" and "fantastic failure" to sum up Real's performance while suggesting they were made a laughing stock by Arsenal.

It went on to ironically mention Madrid’s "Fantastic Four", highlighting the impotence of their four attackers after managing just six shots on target against David Raya across both ties, noting that it was a marginally greater number than the shots on goal by double free-kick scoring Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice.

"This Madrid is not made for miracles," slammed Marca, which highlighted on its website the collective failure. "Real Madrid fell in the Champions League due to their lack of football, as it was predicted throughout the season. They seemed powerless." It also anticipated a major change at the club: "The end of the cycle is evident."

Publication Sport turned the spotlight onto Mbappe, featuring him on the front page with the headline: "No Champions and no Mbappe." With the Frenchman having been taken off with an injury in the 75th minute, the paper did acknowledge his efforts, though it was ultimately in vain.

Mundo Deportivo likewise sympathised with Mbappe's attempts to carry the team. The publication wrote: "Real Madrid has spent the whole season without football, without coherent play, resisting with individuality, without having managed to integrate Kylian into a team that seems to have tried to reaffirm that it did not need him. He's an excellent player, but that was not enough," adding that coach Carlo Ancelotti was “deeply affected” by the elimination.

The outlet also noted that Ancelotti had urged his players to compete "with head, heart and balls," echoing the words of tennis star Carlos Alcaraz. "Madrid played with two of those. It lacked head, there was too much heart, and the third was obvious," MD wrote.

El Pais also took issue with Ancelotti's tactics, writing: "There was no game because the play wasn't fluid. There was no plan, the plan was chaos. Nothing came of that chaos. On the night when the mother of all comebacks was expected, the most decisive player was Courtois."

The Spanish media did not seem overly concerned with the decisions made by referee François Letexier, such as the penalty awarded to Arsenal and the denial of Mbappe's appeal, preferring to turn the page as quickly as possible. Arsenal too will now look ahead to their blockbuster semi-final clash with Paris Saint-Germain at home on April 29, while Ancelotti is reportedly set to depart Madrid after their Copa del Rey final against Barcelona on April 26.