WENGER: DON’T DO A BARCA!
EUROPA LEAGUE Roma give Gunners a wake-up call
® from TIM GRAY in Moscow
ARSENE WENGER believes that Barcelona’s amazing Champions League exit has handed his Arsenal side a timely warning.
The Catalans faced Roma backed by a 4-1 first leg lead – but still found themselves on the receiving end of a massive shock.
Arsenal face CSKA tonight in Moscow with the same advantage Barca took to Italy.
And Wenger says Roma’s away goals triumph should serve as a reminder the Europa League tie is far from over.
The Gunners boss said: “That may be a warning for us. But let us not go overboard.
“Yes, we have a big job to do but we are in a strong position and it is how we approach the game that will be vital.
“We are in a position where I don’t think we are under threat of complacency. It is an important target for us to go as far as possible.”
Centre-back Shkodran Mustafi backed his manager and insists Roma’s win will act as a wake-up call.
He said: “It came as perfect timing for us, to see that it is football. You are never safe especially when you win at home and have the away game.
“You have to be very careful how you show up and it showed us that we have to be really focused.”
Mustafi is desperate to play his role in a rock-solid Arsenal display in a bid to boost his hopes of returning to Russia for this summer’s World Cup.
The defender, who was left out of Germany’s last squad, said: “I am going to use the games we have in the Premier League and Europa League to get my place.
“All I can do is do my work on the pitch and we will see at the end if I am going to be nominated or not.”
Striker Alexandre Lacazette will spearhead the Arsenal attack with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang cup-tied for the Europa League clash.
There were no special security measures in place when Arsenal arrived in Russia and Wenger expects no problems on that front.
Eight hundred tickets have been sold for the away end, but 500 of those supporters are thought to live in Russia itself.
The manager said: “On that front there will be no problems.
“We are not really informed about what is right and wrong so we are best to stay out of that.
“We had many Russian fans in London and there was no problem, why should it be different here?”