Back fans to bring the noise

PORTO have been warned the Emirates Stadium is now a “different animal” as Arsenal target a famous European night in north London.

The Gunners, who trail 1-0, are preparing to stage their first Champions League knockout tie on home soil since they were demolished 5-1 by Bayern Munich seven years ago.

So much has changed since then – not least the drastic shift in atmosphere that former Arsenal central defender Martin Keown (below) has noticed over the past two seasons.

The TNT Sports pundit said: “The Emirates is a different animal now, we were fed that it was the promised land when we first moved there.

“But we hadn’t quite seen that atmosphere, however, in the last two seasons we have.

“The fans are always playing a part, they’re good judges and when they’ve got a team that makes them respond, it works together. The symmetry is back and it’s united again.

“These supporters were brought up on success, they’re still young enough and old enough to see what was coming before and they can taste it coming again.”

Keown is optimistic Arsenal have the tools to edge Porto and go far in the competition.

He added: “They can do something big in Europe this season but they need to get past this first step.

“Arsenal have won most of their recent games very quickly, it’s been great for their confidence.”

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