Mikel Arteta told Arsenal are ‘not at the level’ of two Champions League rivals

Mikel Arteta before Arsenal’s win over Sporting (Picture: Getty)

Mikel Arteta has been warned that Arsenal are ‘not at the level’ of two Champions League rivals despite their quarter-final first-leg win over Sporting.

The Premier League leaders have one foot in the Champions League semi-finals after beating Portuguese giants Sporting 1-0 in Lisbon on Tuesday night .

The tie looked set to end in a stalemate before substitute Kai Havertz scored an injury-time winner to give Arsenal a narrow advantage going into next week’s second leg at the Emirates Stadium.

Arteta’s side had lost back-to-back games for the first time this season going into the match, suffering defeats to title rivals Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final and Championship side Southampton in the FA Cup .

Arsenal again failed to hit top form out in Lisbon but will be more than content with their night’s work as they chase a first ever Champions League trophy.

Ex-Chelsea midfielder Craig Burley fully expects Arsenal to reach the semi-finals after winning away from home but says the Gunners will need to ‘up their game’ to stand any chance of winning the competition.

Bayern Munich beat Real Madrid 2-1 in the first leg of their quarter-final on the same nigh t and Burley said both those teams looked a cut above Arsenal, never mind other contenders in the draw such as Champions League holders PSG and La Liga leaders Barcelona.

Kai Havertz earned Arsenal a narrow win in Lisbon (Picture: Getty)

‘In terms of the result you obviously take it,’ Burley said on ESPN . ‘Sporting are one of the weakest teams left if not the weakest team but Arsenal haven’t been great, we know that.

‘I imagine they’re home and dry after that result barring a disaster at home. No matter who the opposition is, Champions League quarter-finals, you get a 1-0 lead to take back home next week – you’re taking that.

‘They’re going to have to up their game though, if they go through against Sporting, which they should, and get to the semi-finals, if they don’t up their game… I mean, did you see the other game tonight, Real Madrid vs Bayern?

Bayern Munich beat Real Madrid on the same night (Picture: Getty)

‘At the moment Arsenal, whilst they have everybody talking about the depth of their squad and that they’re probably going to win the Premier League, they need to play better.

‘That level that Bayern and Real Madrid got to today – and we know they can both get better – I don’t think Arsenal… they’ve really got to flick that switch again to get to that level.

‘Is anybody surprised that Arsenal are winning 1-0 away at one of the weakest teams left? That’s all I’m saying.

‘Bigger picture, they have to find the extra gears that they had at the beginning of the season, or they’re not going to win this competition. I’m not being negative, that’s just how it is.’

Arsenal have one foot in the semi-finals (Picture: Getty)

Arsenal were brilliant in the first-half of the season, enjoying a flawless Champions League group stage campaign with eight straight wins, including a 3-1 victory over Bayern Munich .

‘Yeah but that was when Arsenal were playing free-flowing football, which we know they can do,’ Burley added.

‘They were really pressing teams, they were going out from the get-go, they were a hundred miles an hour, they were throttling the life out to teams and players were in form – all those things have gone.’

‘People have talked about Arsenal playing gritty and grinding but that didn’t work against Man City in the cup final. They tried that approach and City were too good.

‘So I just think they’re going to have to find a different game. It’s one thing grinding it out against Sporting. I don’t think they’re going to be able to grind it out against the likes of Bayern.

‘Because I think if you give teams like Bayern that amount of possession, they’ll cut you open. So I do feel they’ll have to get their players fit again, Arsenal that is, and back on form. Otherwise, the semi-finals are going to be a big problem.’

Arsenal resume their Premier League title charge against Bournemouth on Saturday boasting a nine-point lead over Manchester City.