Mikel Arteta has hailed Arsenal’s “positive” Champions League campaign after the club drew Porto in the round of 16.
The manager said: “Overall, I think, very positive.
“Having not been in the competition for six or seven years and having a team that hasn’t got that much experience, I think we’ve competed really well.
“I really liked the approach of the team in every single game, the way we’ve tried to play. We had some big results and big experiences, like the one we had in Seville or Lens, or even today looking at how the team can act and how fair it is to give certain players that exposure when you make so many changes.
“Overall finishing first with a game to play we have to be really happy. Now we have to now close that chapter until February and make sure that when that chapter opens up again that we’re in the best place to compete against another top side.”
Arsenal sporting director Edu has reacted to Arsenal’s Champions League draw, which saw the Gunners draw Porto.
He said: “We are going to play against a club that is very used to playing in the competition because they play in it every single year and they have a lot of players as well with big experience.
“We have to understand how are we going to play and respect them as much as we can. We will play our game and see if we can go through this stage.
“We can see how they are playing, how organised they are, and the players that they have. Porto is a club that you have to be really prepared to play against or we’ll have problems, so what we have to concentrate on is maintaining our levels and the way we are playing.”
Arsenal sporting director Edu has reacted to Arsenal’s Champions League draw, which saw the Gunners draw Porto.
He said: “We are going to play against a club that is very used to playing in the competition because they play in it every single year and they have a lot of players as well with big experience.
“We have to understand how are we going to play and respect them as much as we can. We will play our game and see if we can go through this stage.
“We can see how they are playing, how organised they are, and the players that they have. Porto is a club that you have to be really prepared to play against or we’ll have problems, so what we have to concentrate on is maintaining our levels and the way we are playing.”
Dwight Yorke has insisted that Arsenal have still overpaid for Declan Rice despite his impressive performances.
He told MegaDice.com: “Declan Rice needs to win a couple of trophies before I change my tune. I know he scored important goals against Luton and Man United, but that's what you'd expect when you spend such a large fee.
“Scoring a few important goals doesn't mean much if you finish second at the end of the season. That's not what I want my £100million man to be doing - I want him to win major trophies.
Credit: Reuters
“People think that's unfair, but the fee is a hell of a lot to spend to finish second. People may think there's more to it, but you have to bring success to the club if you've joined for that amount of money. There's no point otherwise.
“Rice can score important goals, but it means nothing if Arsenal don't win trophies. I expect Rice to be like a modern Roy Keane and drag his team to silverware. If he does that, then I'll have no issues with his fee.
“I think Rice is a damn good player, but I don't see £105million in him. I suppose that's just the market, though. If Rice delivers success, then I'll be the first one to congratulate him.''
John Terry has backed Real Madrid over Arsenal to win the Champions League title.
Following the draw, he said: "I think team-wise you have to look at Real Madrid.
"For me, I think they have been fantastic, probably for the last seven or eight years in the competition and are always there.
"I think Bellingham has been incredible as an individual and they obviously have a fantastic manager in Carlo who I worked alongside for many years at Chelsea.
"He's a great man manager, so the players love him, great tactically and I think they will go a long way."
Mikel Arteta has hailed Arsenal’s “positive” Champions League campaign.
He said: “Overall, I think, very positive.
“Having not been in the competition for six or seven years and having a team that hasn’t got that much experience, I think we’ve competed really well.
“I really liked the approach of the team in every single game, the way we’ve tried to play. We had some big results and big experiences, like the one we had in Seville or Lens, or even today looking at how the team can act and how fair it is to give certain players that exposure when you make so many changes.
“Overall finishing first with a game to play we have to be really happy. Now we have to now close that chapter until February and make sure that when that chapter opens up again that we’re in the best place to compete against another top side.”
Edu has also insisted that Arsenal need to "maintain" the performances in order to progress in the competition.
He added: "The most important thing for us is to maintain our performances and the way we are playing.
"That’s our focus, that’s where we want to be and want to keep growing, so let’s see how far we can go in the competition.
"We want to try and go as far as possible, but we are very much concentrating on playing well, performing well and playing the best football we can, and then we’ll see how far we go."
Edu has reacted to Arsenal's draw against Porto in the Champions League round of 16.
Speaking after the draw, he said: “We are going to play against a club that is very used to playing in the competition because they play in it every single year and they have a lot of players as well with big experience.
“We have to understand how are we going to play and respect them as much as we can. We will play our game and see if we can go through this stage.
“We can see how they are playing, how organized they are, and the players that they have. Porto is a club that you have to be really prepared to play against or we’ll have problems, so what we have to concentrate on is maintaining our levels and the way we are playing.”
Gabriel Jesus has previously admitted that he wants to win the Champions League with Kai Havertz, having lost out on the cup to the German in 2021.
He said: ''A lot, we are always joking that he [Havertz] won the Champions League against me and I always say I want to win one with him!''
''We always joke [about it], but now I want to win with him and Jorginho as well. He is an amazing player and the way he plays he is so strong and tall, with his quality as well he helps us a lot.
'Quietly like me, he is always fighting and helping the team and the way this guy has arrived is massive. We are very happy we have him.''
