Arsenal will have to pull off an upset for the ages to reach the Champions League semi-finals. After thrashing PSV 9-3 on aggregate in the round of 16, Mikel Arteta's side were handed the worst possible last-eight draw against holders Real Madrid, who progressed after ruthlessly dismantling Pep Guardiola's declining Manchester City.
Real were deserving winners last season, but look even stronger now, not least because of the summer addition of Kylian Mbappe. Indeed, Carlo Ancelotti's men are still in the hunt for a historic treble, while in stark contrast, Arsenal have fallen way behind Liverpool in the Premier League title race, and the Champions League is the only trophy left for them to play for.
Arsenal have enough quality to cause Real plenty of problems at the back - just as Valencia did in La Liga at the weekend - but won't have any hope of winning the quarter-final tie if they can't keep Mbappe, and his right-hand man Jude Bellingham, quiet across the two legs. They wouldn't be the first team to fail in that regard, and certainly not the last.
After a slow start to life at Real, Mbappe has re-emerged as one of the most deadly strikers in the business and a firm contender for the Ballon d'Or again. However, he may face stiff competition for the 2025 Golden Ball from Bellingham, who at just 21 already looks like a complete midfielder - and a future Real captain.
Their presence gives Real an advantage in any game, but in an alternate universe, it would have been Arsenal benefitting heading into this blockbuster clash. That's because the Gunners came agonisingly close to signing Mbappe and Bellingham when they were teenagers, with one bargain deal falling through at the last minute and the other leaving legendary former manager Arsene Wenger heartbroken...
