'Arsenal happy to face Barcelona'

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Defender Per Mertesacker believes it could prove a good thing for Arsenal to have to tackle one of Europe's top sides in the last 16 of the Champions League.

The Gunners needed only a point against Napoli on Wednesday night to be sure of winning Group F and with it securing seeding for the knock-out stage.

However, after their 2-0 defeat at the Stadio San Paolo - where midfielder Mikel Arteta was sent off in the second half - and a late winner for Borussia Dortmund in Marseille, Arsene Wenger's men are now likely to face one of Europe's leading teams.

They could be paired with Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid or Paris St Germain when the draw is made on Monday in Nyon, Switzerland.

Germany international Mertesacker, however, sees no reason why the Premier League leaders cannot raise their own performance levels once more, as they did with superb away wins over both Bayern last campaign and then, earlier this season, Dortmund.

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