Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has the opportunity to join esteemed company in the Champions League when Arsenal host PSV Eindhoven in the last 16 on Wednesday night.
The Gunners are virtually assured of a spot in the quarter-finals against either Real or Atletico Madrid, after thrashing the Eredivisie holders 7-1 in Eindhoven last week.
Despite dropping points in all of their previous three league games, with a lack of threat in attack costing Arteta’s men valuable points, they were ruthless in the first leg last Tuesday.
Seven different players found the net for Arsenal, and they can now afford to take their foot off the gas slightly for the return leg tomorrow.
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Arteta to join a distinguished group of managers?
In what will be Arteta’s 20th game in charge in the Champions League, he has the chance to become just the 10th manager to win at least 13 of his first 20.
Among the legendary names also in that list are the likes of Marcelo Lippi, Zinedine Zidane, Louis van Gaal and Jupp Heynckes, all of whom went on to win the competition during their managerial careers.
All the stats suggest Arteta will join that club, based not only on the first-leg scoreline, but on how dominant they have been in this competition so far this season.
Arsenal won all four league phase home games without conceding, including against Paris Saint-Germain, and across all venues, they have won five in a row, scoring 20 goals in the process.
Not since the days of Arsene Wenger in late-2005 have the Gunners won six in a row in the Champions League, and they went on to reach the final that season, something that now feels like a requirement for Arteta if this campaign is to be a success.
With the bookmakers, Arsenal are currently fifth in the market to win the competition this season, but just to reach the final, they know they must potentially beat both Real Madrid and Liverpool.
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Arsenal seeking more records in return leg?
Arsenal already set a new Champions League record in the first leg, with the 7-1 thrashing becoming the all-time largest margin of victory in an away knockout stage match.
Arteta can now match his master Pep Guardiola by helping Arsenal become just the second English club ever to score 10 goals across two legs of a single Champions League tie, after Manchester City managed it in a 10-3 aggregate win over Schalke in 2019.
PSV have lost on 12 of their 20 trips to England, with two of the last six visits being at the Emirates, which both ended in defeat, and some underwhelming domestic form suggests there is little down for them in North London.
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