Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta's true feelings clear after Carlo Ancelotti admission

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has hailed Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti ahead of the two teams' meeting at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night.

The Gunners head into the clash confident they can upset the Los Blancos winning machine.

Hopes of Antonio Rudiger, Kylian Mbappe, Dani Ceballos and Vinicius Jr being banned for the quarter-final following their excessive celebrations in the last round, were banished last week when UEFA chose not to press ahead with any further punishments, other than fines.

This means Arsenal will be facing the full strength of Real in the two legs and will be deemed as slight underdogs considering their opponents' pedigree in the competition.

Ancelotti alone has masterminded five Champions League titles in his career and the Gunners know they will need to be at their best to advance.

Ahead of the tie in North London, Arteta was asked for his thoughts on Ancelotti to which the Spaniard heaped praise onto the legendary Italian.

"Yeah absolutely, Carlo is a huge inspiration, history, in the Champions League he has done more than anyone else," he told the assembled reporters.

"He can help players win games.

"His tranquility, his human side is a big thing for the players."

Arsenal's full focus appears to be on the Champions League in the remainder of this campaign having closed the gap to 11 points with a draw at Everton on Saturday.

Liverpool lost 3-2 at Fulham on Sunday to miss the chance to go 14 points clear at the summit.

Nevertheless, Arteta chose not to risk the returning Bukayo Saka from the start against the Toffees while captain Martin Odegaard dropped to the bench in preparation for the European tie.

I think we all know what they do and we watch a lot of their games and we've seen the comebacks and the late wins that they've recovered.

The winner of this quarter-final will face either PSG or Aston Villa in the semi-finals of the Champions League.

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