“Having faced Erling Haaland, Mohamed Salah and Lamine Yamal many times, I can proudly say I’m not scared of any player again but this particular Arsenal player who I will never like to face and I pray Arsenal don’t get to quarter-final”: Real Madrid defender Antonie Rudiger names Arsenal’s player as the most difficult attacker to face in the world

Arsenal will face PSV Eindhoven in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League, with the winner set for a potential showdown against either Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid in the quarter-finals.

The Gunners impressed during the group stage, finishing third overall with 19 points. Their top-eight finish allowed them to skip the knockout phase play-off round and advance directly to the last 16, alongside clubs like Aston Villa, Atlético Madrid, Barcelona, Bayer Leverkusen, Inter Milan, Lille, and Liverpool.

They were later joined by Bayern Munich, Benfica, Club Brugge, and Feyenoord, while Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, and PSV Eindhoven booked their spots through the play-offs. As a seeded team, Arsenal will have the advantage of playing the second leg of their tie at the Emirates Stadium.

Their upcoming opponents, PSV Eindhoven, will pose a significant challenge after eliminating Juventus in the previous knockout round. Should Arsenal progress, they are set for a tough quarter-final clash against the winner of the all-Madrid tie between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid, regarded as one of the tournament favourites, demonstrated their strength by defeating Manchester City in the Round of 32—an early victory over one of the pre-tournament contenders. However, Los Blancos will need to maintain focus and intensity over both legs against their city rivals to reach the next stage.

Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid secured their place in the knockout phase with solid performances in the group stage. Diego Simeone’s side, known for their defensive resilience and tactical discipline, will look to upset their more illustrious neighbours in what promises to be a fierce contest.

With tough fixtures on the horizon, Arsenal’s journey toward Champions League glory will demand peak performance, starting with their crucial clash against PSV Eindhoven.

Arsenal player hailed 

Crystal Palace defender Maxence Lacroix says Gabriel Jesus is the toughest opponent he has faced, while he enjoys playing against Erling Haaland.

Lacroix has impressed since joining Palace from Wolfsburg over the summer, having come up against some of the best strikers in the world like Haaland and Alexander Isak. However, Lacroix has named Arsenal star Jesus as the “most difficult player” he has come up against.

Jesus netted a brace in Arsenal’s 5-1 win over Palace back in December and Lacroix was hugely impressed with the Brazilian. “The most difficult player I’ve played against is Gabriel Jesus, he scored a lot against us,” he told talkSPORT.

“It was difficult because he has good movement. I like to play against Haaland because he’s strong, we know it’s going to be a fight. I don’t like when players run a lot.”

Jesus has since suffered a season-ending ACL injury and Arsenal have been left without a frontline striker after Kai Havertz also suffered a serious hamstring injury that has ended his campaign prematurely.

Havertz recently underwent successful surgery and shared an update on his recovery. In a post on Instagram, Havertz wrote: “The last few days have been tough to process both physically and mentally. But yesterday was a good day.

“A successful op and a win. Thanks for all the messages of support over the last few days, it’s really helped. I’m now focused on my journey to full fitness and giving all the support I can give to the team in the background.”

When asked about Arsenal’s injury crisis earlier this month, Gunners boss Mikel Arteta said: “Certainly it is a big blow because of the injuries that we have but fortunately, we’ve been through a lot this season.

“We have played without Gabriel, without Saliba, Ben White all season, Tomiyasu all season, Calafiori for two months, Merino for two months, Martin Odegaard for two months, Bukayo Saka for three months, Gabriel Jesus… all of them. So that’s it, that’s the challenge ahead.

“I love it and look forward because we are still where we are with all the things I mentioned on top of playing four times with 10 men, blah blah blah. Let’s see what the team is made of.” Arsenal will be back in action on Saturday when they host West Ham at the Emirates.