The veteran midfielder insists that despite Arsenal's formidable recent run, Villarreal believe they can reach the semi-finals at their expense...

Former Arsenal winger Robert Pires has stated that he and his Villarreal teammates have nothing to fear from the English side when they arrive at El Madrigal tomorrow evening for their quarter-final clash in the Champions League.

Pires spent six successful seasons with the Gunners, winning the Premier League on two occasions and is well aware of the threat his former side pose.

Marca reports that the Frenchman said, “This is a very special round for me because I had six years there but the only thing I want to do is move forward to the semi-finals with Villarreal.

“They [Arsenal] come here after not losing for 17 games, but Villarreal is not afraid of this because the Champions League is a very different tournament. We have great confidence and play very well against English teams.”

Furthermore, Pires believes that the current crop available to coach Manuel Pellegrini could be good enough to go on to reach the final of the tournament.

He finished, “People think Villarreal cannot win the Champions League, but I think we are good enough to at least reach the final because we have a lot of quality, and anything can happen.”