Few people gave Wenger’s boys a hope when they were drawn against the megastars from Madrid.

Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo trudged off the pitch heartbroken as their last chance of silverware this season vanished and Arsenal went through, thanks to Thierry Henry’s goal in the Bernabeu two weeks ago.

These two teams might not have the steel needed to win their league titles but their football is smooth as silk.

Just 24 hours after Chelsea crashed out of Europe in a tense and scratchy game in Barcelona, they thrilled Highbury with a breathless feast.

Jose Antonio Reyes rattled the bar with the best chance of the first half for the Gunners.

Then Raul was denied, first by a post and then by a brilliant save by Jens Lehmann in a matter of seconds, before Robert Pires almost scored from halfway in a frantic finale.

Real started menacingly and Arsenal received an early reminder that this tie was still very much alive when Thomas Gravesen found Ronaldo totally unmarked in front of goal.

Former Everton midfielder Gravesen dropped a pass on the Brazilian’s head but Jens Lehmann moved quickly to his right and pushed the header behind for a corner.

Roberto Carlos then smashed one of his trademark left-foot efforts narrowly wide but Arsenal swept straight up the other end and Reyes snatched a shot across goal.

That was all in the first five minutes and it set the tone for the evening with both teams eager to confirm their reputations as entertainers.

Skipper Raul had started his 101st Champions League game quietly but produced a clever flick to release Ronaldo in the 15th minute.

The Brazilian looked certain to score until his international team-mate Gilberto made a fantastic last-gasp tackle to steal the ball.

Decent chances were squandered by Philippe Senderos and Cesc Fabregas before the break but the best chance of the first half fell to Reyes in the 43rd minute.

Gilberto launched a huge punt down the centre and Henry fought off two challenges to bring it under control.

Reyes was free on the right but Henry took a split-second too long to spot him.

The Spaniard was under pressure by the time his captain passed the ball but it was still a clear opening – he lifted it the ball over Iker Casillas but it rebounded off the woodwork.

Arsenal poured forward but they gave Madrid chances at the other end too.

Jens Lehmann saved a Beckham free-kick and a mistake by Alexander Hleb in midfield exposed his back-four to a quick break – but Emmanuel Eboue and Senderos scrambled to quash the danger.

Raul came within inches of levelling the aggregate scores when he hit the post and was denied by a top-class save.

His first effort was a terrific, from 20 yards after Beckham had won the ball in the air – the rebound came back to him and he turned the ball towards the gaping net.

Lehmann was on the turf from the initial shot but he stuck up his right arm and clawed the ball away from goal with his fingertips.

Iker Casillas tipped an Henry shot wide then the French striker performed a bit of magic to dance past three defenders and curled a 20-yard effort within an inch or two of glory.

Lehmann snatched a chance off the forehead of Baptista and Ljungberg hurled himself in front of a blockbuster from Zidane in a frantic finale. It was an example of the team’s heroic defending.

Casillas came up for a corner and Pires almost scored from halfway as the home team broke – his rolling shot was on target but Roberto Carlos raced back to stop it on the line.