Mertesacker: United can help Arsenal forget about Barca collapse

Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker said the Premier League title hopefuls are looking to regain their focus with a win over Manchester United, after tasting defeat in Europe during the week.

Mertesacker and Co. have a mountain to climb if they are to reach the Champions League quarter-finals following their 2-0 loss at home to Barcelona on Tuesday.

Arsenal were wasteful up front as Barca gained the upper-hand heading into the return leg of the last-16 tie.

But Mertesacker is determined to forget about that result as third-placed Arsenal make the trip to Old Trafford on Sunday.

“We will go to Manchester United and we are in a good position – we don’t want to give that up. We have a great chance to focus back on the Premier League and forget what happened in the last 20 minutes [against Barcelona],” said Mertesacker, whose Arsenal are two points adrift of league-leading Leicester City after 26 rounds.

“Leicester City was a good game to make us believe we are still in it. You need to have little successes on the road. We go step by step, nothing else. We have a great chance on Sunday to do that again and show that we can compete for the title.

“It helps we beat United last year in the cup. I think that was a great experience for us and it is still in our heads sometime when you think about big games and Old Trafford.

“It is going to be an interesting game so let’s not forget the positives from Barcelona and go there and give our best with the same effort.”