Antic ready for Arsenal

By Andy Hall

A 2-0 defeat at the weekend at home against Malága CF may have marked the end of coach Radomir Antic's honeymoon period with RC Celta de Vigo, but the Serbo-Montenegrin coach's magic touch could yet return in the UEFA Champions League as his side take on Premiership leaders Arsenal FC on Tuesday.

Way to go
The 54-year-old, who had been linked with the coaching job at Arsenal's north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur FC, led Celta out of the Primera División doldrums in his first games since taking over from Miguel Ángel Lotina at the end of January. However, Antic believes his side have a way to go until they are back on top of their game.

Confidence returning
"It's always important to start winning and we have been playing good football which has given us confidence," said the coach. "But we have not yet reached the level that I would like, mainly because we have too many players out injured."

New signings
New signings Mauricio Pinilla and Sasa Ilic have helped create some valuable stability in Celta's domestic campaign, but with Ilic ineligible for the Champions League - having already played in the competition for FK Partizan this season - it will be Celta's old guard who take the pitch against Arsenal.

Surprise qualifiers
Few had expected Celta to progress to the knockout stages alongside Spanish compatriots Real Madrid CF, RC Deportivo La Coruña and Real Sociedad de Fútbal. Even fewer expect them to get past Arsène Wenger's Arsenal, who have hit a rich vein of form since struggling early in the group stages of the Champions League.

Away form
However, Antic is happy with facing the Gunners. "It's good for us to meet Arsenal," he said. "They have a lot of experience in these kind of games - for us it's something new. But Arsenal could have problems passing through to the quarter-finals because they struggle when playing outside England."

Dangerous striker
That being said, the coach is well aware of the damage that striker Thierry Henry can inflict. "He is in such good form and is a very quick player," said Antic. "Twenty-one goals in 23 matches have given him confidence. He is always in the right place and it won't be easy but I hope that he has an off day against Celta."

Home advantage
For Celta, the key is to get a win in the first leg at home at their Balaídos stadium. From his time playing in England with Luton Town FC, Antic knows Arsenal's Highbury stadium, and also knows that the wide expanses of the Balaídos will not necessarily suit their game.

Narrow pitch
"They give a very good impression when playing at Highbury and they seem comfortable playing on a narrow pitch, but I am looking forward to getting a good result when they come and visit us here at the Balaídos," he said.

Galician strength
Should Celta manage to do the seemingly impossible and overcome Arsenal, it would set up the prospect of two teams from Galicia - Celta and Deportivo - taking places in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Whether this would represent a major coup for the region is questionable for Antic.

Good sign
"I'm just looking to improve things at Celta," he said. "It would be nice to have more home-grown players at the club because at the moment, none of our players are from here. Generally speaking, the fact that Celta and Deportivo are now in the top places in Europe can only be beneficial to Spanish football."