Arsenal hero who helped stun Real Madrid explains how Gunners can repeat history

Arsenal are preparing for a two-legged quarter-final with Real Madrid in the Champions League and they have defied the odds to knock the Spaniards out of the competition before

Philippe Senderos believes Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal squad can emulate his own Gunners side and stun Real Madrid en route to the Champions League final. And his side, back in 2005-06, were arguably even more unfancied against the Spanish giants.

Senderos was part of an Arsene Wenger-led back four which didn’t concede a single goal in 540 minutes of knockout football before Barcelona stopped them in Paris. That run began with a Thierry Henry-inspired 1-0 win at the Bernabeu, with Juventus and Villarreal also put to the sword.

Arteta’s team can’t match that defensive record, but beat PSV Eindhoven 9-3 in the round of 16 and will welcome the current Champions League holders to the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday. And Senderos, who briefly played with the Arsenal manager at Everton, can see the parallels.

“I remember that game very much because my dad is Spanish and is a Real Madrid fan, so for me it was like living one of my dreams playing against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu,” Senderos tells Mirror Football via newbettingsites.uk. “Now the first leg is at home, but preparing for a game like this, the pressure around this game, at the time really i would say the expectation from us was trying to do our best against the Galacticos.

“The pressure was more on Real Madrid to really perform and we were a bit the outsiders, I would say. We prepared like we did for every European game, going into it knowing what we were good at, knowing that we could hit them, and it worked out alright!”

READ MORE: What Arsenal fans are saying about the title race after Liverpool defeatREAD MORE: Mikel Arteta makes confident Arsenal trophy vow ahead of Real Madrid clash

Senderos recognises the challenge of dealing with the Spanish side’s intimidating front line Kylian Mbappe joined last season’s European champions over the summer, but it’s not as simple as simply stopping the former Paris Saint-Germain star.

“Stop him, and then you have to stop Vinicius and then Rodrygo!” he adds. “They [Madrid] have fantastic players, and it’s going to have to be a collective approach.

“Arsenal are going to have to stay very tight, develop on the wings, and this will require a lot of work from the midfielders, from the full-backs, to make sure the spaces are not big.”

Arsenal are still without Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus for both legs, but are beginning to welcome others back. They were dealt a blow just a week before the Real Madrid clash, though, with centre-back Gabriel ruled out for the remainder of the season.

Arteta’s men already have memorable wins in the competition this season, including victory over PSG back in October. However, Senderos believes victory over Real Madrid can provide even more confidence to kick on and maybe even go one better than in 2006.

“There are still amazing teams in the competition but definitely beating a team like Real Madrid could give them a boost of confidence and belief, and hopefully go on to at least emulate what we did in 2006 and get to the final and then it’s up for the taking,” he says. “I believe they have a very good team that can create something like this, and at the Emirates, with the atmosphere, why not?”

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