Rakitic wary of Arsenal threat to Barcelona

Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic is reluctant to accept his team-mates are favourites to overcome Arsenal in the last-16 of the Champions League, labelling the Gunners as “one of the best teams in history.”

Rakitic was on target in last season's Champions League final triumph over Juventus, part of a lucrative treble which also saw the Catalan giants win La Liga and the Copa del Rey in the Croatia midfielder's first season at the club.

Currently boasting an eight-point advantage in their domestic league and having booked a Copa del Rey final place against Sevilla, Barca are on course to repeat the same feat again this season.

However, Rakitic has gone some way to easing the pressure on Barca slightly ahead of facing Premier League opponents he holds in the highest regard on Tuesday evening.

"There is no need to talk about favourites," he told a pre-match press conference. "Arsenal are one of the best teams in history.

"We have to play well to get a good result but we will also rely on the second leg."

Barcelona's chances of securing back-to-back trebles are bolstered by the phenomenal exploits of dazzling forward trio Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

Messi, Suarez and Neymar, otherwise known as 'MSN', have scored 91 goals between them in the current campaign and Rakitic admits they are a joy to play alongside every week.

"Having this front three fills me with pride," Rakitic added. "The rest of us do what we can to make them better.