Arsenal has found out who its opponents in the Champions League round of 16 could be. The Canaries have known for more than a fortnight that they will be in the next stage of the competition after beating Lens 6-0 in the fifth leg to secure top spot in Group B.
“I think overall it’s very positive,” Mikel Arteta said of his team’s Champions League campaign so far after they rounded off the group stage with a 1-1 draw against PSV. “Considering that we haven’t been in this competition for six or seven years and that we have a team that doesn’t have that much experience, I think we have done very well. I really liked the way the team approached every single game, the way we tried to play.
“We had some great results and great experiences, like the one in Sevilla or Lens, or even today, looking at how the team can work and how fair it is to give certain players that exposure when you make so many changes.
“Overall, we are in first place with one game to go, so we have to be very happy. Now we have to close this chapter until February and make sure that when this chapter opens again we are in the best position to compete against another top side.”
The Gunners will be drawn along with the other group winners in Monday’s Round of 16 draw in Monaco. This means they avoid meeting Bayern Munich, Real Madrid or Barcelona. But that doesn’t mean they are guaranteed an easy clash when the competition returns in February.
In some of the matches, Arteta’s men will have a good chance. FC Copenhagen in particular is a potentially friendly opponent. After their promotion at the expense of Manchester United, the Danish champions are hard to write off.
Arsenal could also beat Champions League stalwart Porto. The Portuguese side are second in Group H behind Barcelona, ahead of Shakhtar Donetsk. If the head-to-head system in the Champions League group stage had not been in place, Porto would have been in first place on goal difference ahead of the Catalan giants after a surprising 3-2 defeat against Antwerp in the last group match.
Arsenal are also likely to face an Italian opponent in the round of 16, with Inter Milan, Lazio and Napoli, who are in Serie A, in second place. In this group, Italian champions Napoli would probably be the toughest challenge, while last season’s runners-up Inter have shown that they are very successful in the competition.
Perhaps the toughest team facing Arsenal in the round of 16 is PSG. The French champions only got through Group F with a point away at Dortmund, while Newcastle lost their 1-0 lead against AC Milan. However, any team with Kylian Mbappe is a tough opponent.