• Champions League

Petit: Arsenal owe it to their fans to make history in Monaco

Emmanuel Petit believes Arsenal owe it to themselves and their fans to seek revenge at Monaco and make Champions League history.

Petit was less than impressed watching his former side lose the first leg of their last 16 tie 3-1 in north London, but believes they can become the first team to come from two goals behind in a Champions League away tie to progress.

Arsenal swept aside West Ham 3-0 on Saturday to record their seventh successive domestic triumph and need to reproduce a three-goal winning margin at the Stade Louis II on Tuesday.

"They can do it," former Arsenal and Monaco midfielder Petit, 44, told Le Parisien. "The players owe it to themselves to take revenge. In the first leg, they were below-par in everything, they were unworthy of Arsenal's class.

"They also owe it to the supporters to avenge that defeat. Motivation will be easy to find. There is a feat to be achieved, like PSG against Chelsea. Arsenal can make history by qualifying."

Petit added: "The trap for Arsenal will be to go forward gung-ho. Wenger has to find a balance and his players need to be more efficient. If Arsenal score early, they will sow doubt among the Monaco players."

Petit started his professional career at Monaco, wearing the principality club's colours for almost a decade, the early part of which he was in the charge of current Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger.

"He's a mentor with a paternal role, like for many of his players. I am very happy to have been alongside him for 12 years. His man-management suits me perfectly. There is always a lot of respect and exchange. Wenger is more than a coach," said Petit, who left Monaco in 1997 to be reunited with his former boss at Highbury.

"He'll have a lot of flashbacks coming back to Monaco. It's the same for me. Each time I return to Monaco or Arsenal, everything comes back. The emotions will be very strong for Arsene."

Teams have only come back to make progress having lost a Champions League first leg twice before, and Arsenal's task is all the more difficult given Monaco's remarkable defensive record in the competition.

Leonardo Jardim's men did not concede a goal in three group-stage games, and bested all-comers in the initial phase by allowing opponents to find the net just once in six outings.

The hosts' bid for a first quarter-final appearance since they reached the 2003/04 final will be bolstered by Ricardo Carvalho with the former Champions League winner fit again after a three-month absence.

Carvalho, 36, played the full 90 minutes of Monaco's 3-0 league win over Bastia last Friday, and the Portugal international told L'Equipe he is ready to help his club keep the visitors at bay.

"Everyone knows surprises exist and we have to respect Arsenal. We played well over there, but we need a second at our place otherwise it won't be enough. And Arsenal have nothing to lose. We'll be under a little bit of pressure after what we did there," Carvalho said.

"We have the advantage in terms of the score, and it's good for us, but we have to finish the job off and defend well. We need to stay compact and we'll have to be good with the ball. We mustn't defend all the time. Everyone thinks Monaco are already through, but not us."

Emmanuel Petit believes his former side can make history in Monaco © Getty Images

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