Despite us only needing a point to secure a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League, Mikel Arteta is adamant that we’re in Girona to get a victory.
The squad have touched down in north-east Spain for our final game of the league phase, safe in the knowledge that a draw will mathematically ensure we skip next month’s play-off round, against a side who despite losing by one goal to Liverpool, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain this season are already eliminated.
Opta’s supercomputer has even given us a 0.1% chance of us falling out of the top eight, but with benefits such as a better seeding and the chance to avoid those teams who have performed well in the league phase until late in the knockout stage, Mikel has suggested he will select a strong starting line-up, well-equipped to clinch our sixth win from eight European matches this term.
“We’re here to win the game,” he stated in his pre-match press conference. “In order to do that we’re going to have to be better than them. They’re a really good side, if you look at the games they’ve played in the Champions League against top opposition, they’ve made life very difficult for them.
“Tomorrow it will be a very strong team in order to achieve what we want to do because mathematically the qualifying at the moment is uncertain.”
A win at the Estadio Montilivi on Wednesday night would be our fourth in a row in the competition, a feat we’ve not achieved since 2005, while we’re looking to clinch successive away victories in the Champions League for the first time since 2016.
These stats highlight how impressive we’ve been in Europe this term so far, and Mikel feels that having a year’s experience in the competition under our belts is showing dividends after such a long time away from the Champions League.
Analysing last season’s away displays to this seasons, he analysed: “We’re more consistent and I think we’ve been better in understanding that it’s extremely difficult to win and overplay opposition in the Champions League. Tomorrow, we’re going to face a very good opposition and we’re going to have to be very good to beat them.
“Every game, every scenario, every context is going to be different. It’s coming here, when we need something from the game, and we’re here to win. From the first minute, the attitude and determination will be to go for it again, and hopefully get the game won.”
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