San Francisco Frontiers - Arteta feeding Arsenal stars 'opposite' of comeback message

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Arteta feeding Arsenal stars 'opposite' of comeback message

SPORTS 15.04.2025

Arteta feeding Arsenal stars 'opposite' of comeback message / Photo: © AFP

Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta said he has spent three days filling his players' heads with messages of strength ahead of their Champions League showdown against Real Madrid on Wednesday.

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The Gunners hold a 3-0 lead on record 15-time winners and current holders Madrid going in to the return at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Carlo Ancelotti's side are famed for their ability to forge stunning comebacks, particularly at home, but Arteta said he had tried to keep that narrative away from his squad.

"We have tried to repeat the opposite message," Arteta told a news conference Tuesday.

"In the brain of the players, what they have done in the last 72 hours is something completely different.

"And we are very close to them, and hopefully that's more powerful than anything else. But you have to be there, you have to speak, you have to feel it, and you have to go through it."

Arteta said Arsenal's mindset would be key as they bid to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2009.

The coach said he would not use the word 'fear' going into the second leg, but that he had a healthy respect for Madrid's achievements in Europe.

"I wouldn't use that word... I think (we have) respect and admiration for what they've done in the competition, as a club over the years, said Arteta.

"(They've been) unbelievable, amazing, and (it's) inspiration for the coach and the manager and the team."

Arteta said Arsenal, who were defeated in their only Champions League final appearance against Barcelona in 2006, can stand up to the atmosphere in the Bernabeu.

"(We have) to be convinced that we can handle any situation, and we're going to enjoy actually playing any kind of game that (comes) tomorrow," he added.

Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya said his team has come to the Spanish capital to make their mark, rather than falling victim to the same old Madrid comeback story.

"We are here to write our own history," he told reporters.

"That is what we want to do and that is what we want to achieve tomorrow."

Both Arteta and Raya said Arsenal would be trying to win the match on Wednesday, despite already holding a three-goal lead.

"The intention is to win the game," explained Raya.

"We know how we played in the first game and we have to do the same (again)."

Arteta confirmed Thomas Partey and Ben White are fit to play, but Jorginho will miss the game through injury.

X.White--SFF