Arsenal icon Paul Merson has named the one team he wants his former club to avoid playing within the Champions League knockout phase this term.
The Gunners have all-but already sealed their spot within the quarter-finals having beaten PSV Eindhoven 7-1 of their first leg last-16 clash last week.
Arsenal will face either Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid within the last eight with the 2 Spanish sides set for a second leg showdown later tonight.
Should the north Londoners overcome considered one of the La Liga teams, they’d be set for a battle with Paris Saint-Germain, Aston Villa or Club Brugge within the Champions League semi-finals.
If Arsenal progress to the Champions League final, they might face Barcelona, Bayern Munich or Inter Milan– who’re all on the opposite side of the draw.
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The Gunners have never won the Champions League title before, with the club ending as runners-up to Barcelona under Arsene Wenger in 2006.
Ahead of tonight’s round of games, Merson has named the one club he doesn’t want Arsenal to face within the Champions League… Real Madrid.
Real Madrid have won the Champions League a record 15 times, clinching last season’s trophy after beating Borussia Dortmund within the 2024 final.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side have plenty of world-class players of their squad including English midfielder Jude Bellingham, Brazilian star Vinicius Junior and French striker Kylian Mbappe.
Quizzed on how far Arsenal will go on this 12 months’s Champions League knockout phase, Merson told Sky Sports: ‘I feel it is dependent upon who wins out of Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
‘I feel if Atletico Madrid win, Arsenal have a little bit of a probability. I feel that’ll be a decent game, Atletico Madrid don’t blow anybody away – they play a certain type of football.
‘But in the event that they play against Real Madrid, I don’t know in the event that they’re going to give you the option to live with them with goalscoring over two legs, especially with the players which can be out for Arsenal.
‘And I do know they won 7-1 the opposite day, however it was a little bit of a Polyfilla result. It covered over the cracks.’
Real Madrid hold a narrow 2-1 lead over Atletico Madrid following the primary leg of their last-16 showdown on the Bernabeu last week.
Rodrygo and Brahim Diaz were on the scoresheet in that match, with Real Madrid hoping to get the job done on the Metropolitano Stadium tonight.
Atletico Madrid shall be hoping to show things around themselves and will take inspiration from PSG’s victory over Liverpool on Tuesday night.
PSG were 1-0 down after the primary leg but took the second leg to penalties and got here out on top in a dramatic shootout to beat the Reds at Anfield.
The French side are more likely to face Aston Villa within the quarter-finals, with the English team having a 3-1 lead over Club Brugge from their first leg clash.
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