Arsenal have 'a complete team' as Carlo Ancelotti raves about Mikel Arteta

manager has hailed the "fantastic" and labelled Arsenal a "complete team" ahead of their Champions League quarter-final clash. The seasoned coach, with Real Madrid's impressive tally of 15 European Cups behind him, believes that Los Blancos' wealth of experience is what often sees them through challenging times on the pitch. Despite Arsenal being pegged as the underdogs for the upcoming last-eight tie, Ancelotti expressed great admiration for the work Arteta has done at the Emirates.

Ancelotti remarked: "Experience in this competition and knowledge in this competition is really important. It means you are not afraid to play this type of game that puts you under a lot of pressure. It's a really important competition. It's face to face. A lot of pressure. So experience is so important. The fact we have a lot of players who have played a lot of these games gives the younger players more confidence.

"The job we have to do is here and we will have to fight until the very end to make sure that we can win again. We need courage and personality. An important aspect of that is execution. We have prepared for that."

Acknowledging the formidable challenge posed by Arsenal, Ancelotti praised Arteta's team-building skills. The Italian added: "He has built a complete team. There are not many complete teams in Europe. There are teams who do some things well but not many that do everything well like Arsenal do. Arsenal are one of the most important clubs in Europe.

"He arrived when I was at Everton and has taken them to the top of Europe. He is doing a fantastic job and has built a complete team. They are near the top of the Premier League and are in the Champions League quarter finals.

"Mikel Arteta has done a fantastic job. From 2020 onwards he has done really well. The team is stronger than in the past and it will be even stronger in the future."

Real Madrid's goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, confirmed his readiness to face Arsenal, acknowledging their prowess from set pieces.

Courtois stated: "We have a lot of respect for Arsenal and I have a lot of Arsenal friends so I know they have been doing great and have been close to winning a Premier League. They are playing well with a young team and experienced players.

"They defend well, can press high defend in a low block and quick on the counter attack. They can score easily, are dangerous from set pieces but we have prepared well and have analysed their play and where we can hurt them and hopefully they not hurt us.

"Arsenal are doing great and it is a matter of time they win another trophy although hopefully we can pass them in the Champions League."