Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal’s Champions League history is irrelevant and challenged his side to prove they belong at the tournament’s business end as they prepare to face Porto in the last 16.

The Gunners are back in Europe’s elite club competition for the first time in seven years but have failed to progress past this stage since 2010.

Arsenal will be firm favourites at the Estadio do Dragao as Arteta looks to go further in the Champions League than he ever managed as a player at the club.

“They (the players) know that we have not been in the competition for seven years,” the Spaniard said.

“Obviously some of them were here and they know the story and they know that what happened in the past is irrelevant, it is the challenge and ambition we have now to go through.”

Asked if he felt it was a mental block that caused Arsene Wenger’s side to fall at the last-16 hurdle so many times, Arteta replied: “Someone called (Lionel) Messi was another obstacle as well!

“And Bayern Munich that we faced twice. This competition is what it is. Individual quality is extremely important. It comes down to details and you need your players at your best when the occasion arises.”

In celebration of London Fashion Week, watch some of the best Premier League goals scored in the more divisive kits.

Arsenal have not made the quarter-finals of the Champions League since 2009-10.

The Gunners topped their group on their return to the competition after a six-year absence and face the 30-time Portuguese champions for a place in the last eight.

While Mikel Arteta's side are also fighting for the Premier League title, Porto are third in Portugal's Primera Liga, seven points off the top.

Sergio Conceicao's team qualified second in Group H, losing out to Barcelona for top spot on head-to-head results.

Neil Lennon
Former Celtic manager on BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, Getty Images

It is difficult to deal with Pepe at the best of times. So it is not easy to tell your players to not get wound up by him.

You have to give him respect though, he is one hell of a player to still be playing at this level at the age of 40.

He has won the Champions League many, many times and he was one of the players of the tournament for Portugal when they won the Euros in 2016.

But from Arsenal's point of view Mikel Arteta will have briefed them on dealing with him and his antics, and they do not need to get involved. They are in a great vein of form at the minute and need to just focus on getting the result.

With Francisco Conceicao (21) and Otavio (21) both starting tonight, FC Porto have named two players aged 21 or under in the starting XI for a Champions League knockout stage game for the first time since March 2018 v Liverpool (Diogo Dalot and Bruno Costa).

Meanwhile, Pepe (40 years 360 days) is the oldest outfield player to start a knockout stage game in the Champions League, beating the previous record of Ryan Giggs for Manchester United against Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals in April 2014 (40 years 123 days).

Confusingly, Porto have two players called Pepe in their side tonight. The one mentioned above is the veteran Portugal defender, who won the trophy three times with Real Madrid. The other Pepe is a 26-year-old Brazilian winger.

Mina Rzouki
European football expert on BBC Radio 5 live

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Another weekend without a win, another coach dismissed - such has been the reality at Napoli this season.

When they welcome Barcelona to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in the Champions League on Wednesday, Napoli will have another new face on the bench, with Francesco Calzona becoming their third boss of the campaign.

Rarely have we seen Italian champions collapse so spectacularly in their efforts to defend the title. The destruction of Napoli's style and identity, not to mention their competitive attitude, since they won Serie A has been unfathomable.

They are no longer anywhere close to being the "strongest team in Europe", as they were described by Manchester City's Treble-winning coach Pep Guardiola last year.

You can read the rest of Mina Rzouki's synopsis of Napoli's difficult season here.

Napoli won the Italian title last season for the first time in 33 years, but it has been a miserable title defence as they are down in ninth place, currently not enough to qualify for any European football next season.

Image source, .

Barcelona are third, but trailing leaders Real Madrid by eight points with 13 La Liga matches to go.

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Theo Walcott
Former Arsenal forward on BBC Radio 5 Live

What makes me feel as though Arsenal have what it takes to go far in this competition is squad depth. Mikel Arteta doesn't seem to be making too many changes, we know give or take a few names what Arsenal's best team is and he sticks to it.

We know Porto is a very tough place to go, and that will be the case tonight, but you look at Arsenal who are one of the favourites in the Premier League and they could not neccesarily brush them aside but you can say that the draw has been kind to them.

Image source, BBC Sport

Oli Price-Bates, The Fresh Arsenal podcast

Arsenal appear to be peaking at the right time this season and better squad management could be the key reason as to why this campaign may end with more success than last.

As the Champions League gets back under way, the Gunners now have a chance to show if their recent brilliant Premier League form translates into making them a European powerhouse.

Reaching the latter stages of the competition after so many years out of it would truly rubber-stamp the fact that Arsenal are back at the top table.

The winter break in Dubai appears to have rejuvenated Mikel Arteta and his men. Recent convincing wins have also allowed rest for players such as Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice at the end of games, and it seems Mikel is taking a more long-term approach to managing his squad than in 2022-23.

The Spaniard will now hope to welcome back injured players such as Takehiro Tomiyasu, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Jurrien Timber, Thomas Partey and Gabriel Jesus to ensure, unlike last season, they do not run out of quality when the games pile up and the points really matter.

Simon Stone
BBC Sport

Image source, Uefa.com

Uefa have published an update on the current situation regarding the additional two Champions League qualification spots for next season.

Essentially, the two countries with the highest average number of ranking points per competing clubs in this season’s three European competitions will get the spots, with the clubs immediately outside the Champions League qualification spots in the respective countries getting them.

The way the system works, it is almost certain one of the ‘big’ leagues will get the slots. For England that would mean the fifth place Premier League team.

Currently, Italy and Germany are first and second (England third) and if it stayed like that – and the league tables stayed the same – Bologna and RB Leipzig would qualify.

However, England’s situation will worsen this week as teams who get through the Europa League and Europa Conference League play-off rounds get points and England has no-one playing in them.

Manchester United and Newcastle getting knocked out of the Champions League group stage will obviously reduce the average points. All seven Italian clubs who qualified for Europe are still involved, six out of seven for Germany and all six French clubs. Spain, like England, has six out of an initial eight clubs left.

The further clubs get in the tournament, the better it is for that country, which is why Manchester United (and Tottenham and Villa) would benefit from Manchester City (or Arsenal) and Liverpool (or West Ham or Brighton) winning their respective tournaments.

There is also a scenario where England gets six Champions League slots – four qualify as normal, Brighton or West Ham win the Europa League (wouldn’t get an extra slot if Liverpool qualify and finish in top four), and the additional one as outlined. (There could be seven but that would require City or Arsenal winning the Champions League and then finishing sixth, which is not going to happen).

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The last time Arsenal made the quarter-finals of the Champions League was the 2009-10 season. The team they beat in the last 16? Porto.

Ahead of the Gunners' trip to Estadio do Dragao this evening, why not test your knowledge of the side's previous quarter-final appearance in the Champions League?

Let us know how you get on.

As ever you can let us know your thoughts and opinions of tonight's European football action.

Write in via #bbcfootball on 'X', text 81111 (UK only - standard rates apply) or WhatsApp 03301231826.

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Pat Nevin
Former Chelsea and Scotland winger for the BBC Football extra newsletter

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There were plenty of players who caught the eye in Arsenal's win at Turf Moor, but Bukayo Saka being back close to his best was as important as anything else.

He was crucial to their success as they battled with City all last season but there has been a dip in consistency lately from the winger. These two goals helped but it is what he did with his second that was vital.

Even at his best last season, Saka rarely went ‘down the line’ outside past a defender on to his right foot. Instead he invariably cut inside from the right on to his favoured left foot, admittedly often to devastating effect. He was however becoming predictable and as such easier to stop.

As a professional wide man for 19 seasons, I know you have to keep defenders guessing. Even if your forays down the line on to your weaker foot aren’t always successful, you must sew those seeds of doubt to produce space inside.

His second goal at Burnley saw him go down the line and hammer one into the top corner with his ‘swinger’ - his weaker foot. If he continues doing this then he will be an even better player and a more frightening prospect. Just look at Mohamed Salah. Same position, same favoured left foot, but he has learned to go both ways and it has made him one of the best players on the planet.

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Porto make one enforced change to the side who beat Estrela 2-0 last weekend.

Nigerian left-back Zaidu Sanusi came off on a stretcher after suffering an ACL injury in that match and Wendell replaces him.

Former Liverpool midfielder Marko Grujic is on the bench for Porto.

Porto XI: Costa, Mario, Pepe, Otavio, Wendell, Varela, Gonzalez, Conceicao, Pepe, Galeno, Evanilson.

Subs: Ramos, Cardoso, Eustaquio, Grujic, Sanchez, Jaime, Namaso, Franco, Baro, Martinez, Borges, Pedro.

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta decided to stick with the side who won 5-0 against Burnley on the weekend.

Former Porto man Fabio Vieira returns and is on the bench after an injury lay-off.

Gabriel Jesus (knee), Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (knock) remain out.

Arsenal XI: Raya, Kiwior, Saliba, Gabriel, White, Havertz, Rice, Odegaard, Martinelli, Trossard, Saka.

Subs: Ramsdale, Hein, Cedric, Sweet, Heaven, Elneny, Vieira, Jorginho, Smith Rowe, Nelson, Nwaneri, Nketiah.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says his side are "very excited" for their Champions League last-16 first-leg tie with Porto.

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For Napoli, they couldn't have had a worse preparation for tonight's game as on Tuesday this happened...

Napoli have sacked manager Walter Mazzarri after just three months in charge and replaced him with Slovakia boss Francesco Calzona.

Mazzarri succeeded Rudy Garcia in November and departs with the Italian champions ninth in Serie A.

Italian Calzona, 55, had spells as Napoli assistant manager under Maurizio Sarri and Luciano Spalletti.

Calzona will lead Slovakia at Euro 2024 and the country's FA says his deal at Napoli is until the end of the season.

He has a contract with Slovakia until 2025, which would be automatically extended if they qualified for the 2026 World Cup.

Napoli owner Aurelio de Laurentiis thanked Mazzarri for "having helped the team in a tricky period".

Striker Victor Osimhen makes his first appearance of the year for Napoli tonight having helped Nigeria reach the final of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Francesco Calzona, taking charge of his first game, makes four changes from the side who drew 1-1 with Genoa in Serie A.

Juan Jesus, Mathias Olivera and Jens Cajuste also come in. Leo Ostigard, Pasquale Mazzocchi, Hamed Traore and Giovanni Simeone drop to the bench.

Napoli XI: Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Jesus, Olivera, Zambo Anguissa, Lobotka, Cajuste, Politano, Osimhen, Kvaratskhelia.

Subs: Contini, Gollini, Natan, Mario Rui, Traore, Simeone, Lindstrom, Mazzocchi, Ostigard, Raspadori.

Image source, BBC Sport

Joao Felix doesn't manage a spot in the Barcelona line-up despite recovering from an ankle injury.

He's on the bench this evening, while there are two changes from their 2-1 La Liga victory over Celta Vigo.

Ilkay Gundogan and Inigo Martinez replace Pau Cubarsi and Vitor Roque, who are benched.

Barcelona XI: Ter Stegen; Kounde, Ronald Araujo, Inigo Martinez, Joao Cancelo; De Jong, Christensen, Gundogan; Yamal, Lewandowski, Pedri.

Subs: Inaki Pena, Astralaga, Raphinha, Joao Felix, Oriol Romeu, Roque, Sergi Roberto, Casado, Lopez, Cubarsi, Guiu, Fort.

Image source, BBC Sport

BBC Radio 5 Live

You can listen to live coverage of tonight's Champions League football.

Join Mark Chapman on BBC Radio 5 Live at 19:00 GMT for build up to Arsenal's trip to Porto and Barcelona's visit to Napoli.

Then stay with BBC Radio 5 Live from 20:00 GMT for live commentary of Porto v Arsenal from Estadio do Dragao with John Murray and former Celtic boss Neil Lennon.

Listening options for both of tonight's radio programmes can be found at the top of this live page.

Sam Drury
BBC Sport

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Luuk de Jong's coolly converted penalty earned PSV Eindhoven a draw against Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

The Dutch striker equalised 10 minutes into the second half after Mats Hummels was adjudged to have fouled Malik Tillman in the box.

Donyell Malen had put Dortmund ahead in the first half when his deflected shot flew in off the crossbar.

The second leg is in Dortmund on 13 March.