Arsenal’s fringe gamers present they CAN step up in opposition to Real Madrid, writes ISAAN KHAN – it will not be simple, however here is why the Gunners are Champions League contenders

With their dead-rubber Champions League last-16 second leg against PSV Eindhoven out of the way, Arsenal can now look forward.

The 7-1 drubbing of PSV at the Philips Stadion last week made Wednesday night a matter of red tape.

It is Real Madrid who the Gunners will face in the Champions League quarter-finals next month, yet Arsenal’s 2-2 draw last night gave a further glimpse as to why they have a shot in this tournament.

Mikel Arteta rung the changes to his starting line-up. Not in an extravagant fashion — the likes of Nathan Butler-Oyedeji and Ismeal Kabia were on the bench, for example — but enough to see the further options the north London club have in a number of different areas for the latter stages.

The most striking aspect was the four left backs on the pitch in Kieran Tierney, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Jakub Kiwior. And in the second half, substitute Riccardo Calafiori came on.

It’s a very unusual make-up for any team, though there are specific attributes in fringe players Tierney and Zinchenko which can be utilised.

Zinchenko’s goal on six minutes, finishing into the bottom-left corner from the box’s edge, was a reminder of the technical ability and attacking nous he has.

The 28-year-old has been firmly on the periphery of a starting spot and was linked with an exit to Borussia Dortmund in January.

He showed on Wednesday that he has the ability to fill an attacking spot in a midfield which has lacked creativity at times this season.

With Tierney, who is on his way to Celtic this summer, he played left wing. It’s a position that he’s totally unaccustomed to having occupied left back the majority of his career.

That could be seen in his constant dropping back to a defensive spot. Though he undoubtedly has the ability to put in impressive, whipped crosses with pace into the box.

Not many were played last night — there were some neat attacking passes forward — but have been seen in his recent cameos when coming off the bench. It’s a weapon that should not be discounted. With the aerial ability of Mikel Merino leading the line, Tierney’s crosses could well be handy.

These two players come into the focus with an attack shorn of Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus.

Calafiori should arguably be in with a shout for the false nine spot. After coming on in the 64th minute, the Italian showed real attacking prowess in the final third.

There was a clever one-two exchange with a team-mate which saw Calafiori march in on goal, his powerful shot saved by goalkeeper Walter Benitez.

He has a knack of finding himself in attacking positions and, as seen by his goals against Manchester City and Wolves, the versatile defender has some finish on him.

Raheem Sterling deserves a mention, too. He has struggled since joining on loan from Chelsea on summer transfer deadline day, often occupying the bench, but showed his best performance in an Arsenal shirt last night.

Sterling registered two assists, his cross for Declan Rice’s goal particularly of note as he skipped past a couple of players to put in an impressive cross for his team-mate.

He showed a sprightliness not seen in weeks gone by. His team will hope he can kick on from here.

Arsenal are not perfect by any stretch and have fallibilities, such as the lack of a recognised centre forward and wastefulness when dominating possession in the final third.

Yet the Champions League is Arsenal’s last hope of silverware this season after being left behind by Liverpool in the Premier League title race.

It means they can put their eggs all into one basket and focus on this competition; they have the squad to pose Real Madrid a threat.

Undoubtedly, it will be a difficult task. The European champions possesses a wealth of attacking options, such as Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior, who are capable of scoring freely.

If the north London club are to concede, the job becomes a mammoth one for the north London club as they have often struggled with scoring in the Premier League of late.

Although they lost the second leg to Atletico, Real Madrid had won their previous six consecutive Champions League games, including both legs of their play-off double-header with Manchester City.

Though, the Spanish side are likely to leave space for Arsenal to exploit, particularly in the full back positions where they are vulnerable. Plus, Saka will be back – that is significant. 

Regardless, the Gunners need to keep Gabriel and William Saliba in cotton wool. On the evidence of Jakub Kiwior’s display, they would be very light at centre back if either of those two were to get injured.

Kiwior constantly found himself out of position. His panicked pass near the goal on 18 minutes allowed Ivan Perisic to sneak in and put a well-taken finish past David Raya. He would be a clear weak link for teams to exploit.

There’s a long way to go, but Arsenal’s season is not over just yet.