Arsenal pulled off a stunning shock to qualify for the FA Cup final against Manchester City last night.The Gunners boast an incredible record in football's oldest cup competition, winning it thrice since 2013, but Pep Guardiola's holders couldn't have posed a more difficult task in the semi-finals.Nevertheless, two goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were enough for the apprentice to defeat the master with Arsenal coach Arteta having departed the City bench in December.
Luiz's evolution vs Man City
But one of the standout performances on the night came from a very unexpected source: David Luiz.
The Brazilian defender had dropped one of the worst individual games we've ever seen during Arsenal's 3-0 defeat to the same opponents in the first fixture of their Premier League restart.
Luiz picked up the unwanted distinction of becoming the first player since 2015 to commit an error leading to a goal, concede a penalty and collect a red card in the same match.
Luiz's courageous post-match interview
Yet his display under the Wembley arch couldn't have been further from that, collecting the Man of the Match award for a colossal 90 minutes of diehard defending and organisation.
It seemed as though everything City fired into the Arsenal penalty area was headed away by him and whenever he received the ball, a brilliant pass always seemed to come from it.
And Luiz, after all that excruciating criticism last month, showed incredible character during his post-match interview with BT Sport, owning his past mistakes and proudly declaring his progress.
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"There was a lot of criticism of me, I think you can say that," the Brazilian remarked. "That's part of football. I understood during my career that part of football is about surviving.
"Every day you're going to defend your team, and the other people are going to support different teams. It's about surviving, so that's what I did.
"I was working hard every single day after my mistakes. I took the blame, I was mature enough to understand that. I was also humble [enough] to work more for the team."
GIVEMESPORT's Kobe Tong says
Luiz might be a walking mistake at the worst of times and a world-class defender at the best of times, but he certainly has the right attitude at all times.
It spoke volumes about his character that he owned up to his errors so readily after the defeat at the Etihad and wouldn't let any of his teammates foot responsibility for what happened.
And yesterday was proof that Luiz can handle winning and playing well with just as much dignity, maturity and downright minerals as he did after losing and being sent off.
A man is a sum of their experiences and I guess that's why Luiz is so adept at handling the rough and the smooth with equal grace. Thankfully for Arsenal, they got the smooth when it counted.