Arsenal given Premier League title race boost after Champions League draw and Man City nightmare

After this afternoon's Champions League draw, Arsenal have arguably emerged as the happier out of them and Manchester City, when it comes down to the title race

Arsenal and Mikel Arteta would have been delighted with this afternoon's Champions League draw.

Having finished at the top of the group phase by winning all eight matches, the Gunners entered into the round of 16 as the No. 1 seeds. The draw in Nyon, Switzerland, pitted them against Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen.

The north Londoners could have also drawn Atalanta in the next round, which may have initially looked like an easier fixture. However, if Arsenal get past Leverkusen, one of Sporting Lisbon or Norwegian surprise package Bobo/Glimt will be waiting for them in the quarter-finals.

On paper, it's a favourable draw, particularly compared to last year when Arsenal faced Real Madrid in the last-eight. But the biggest result for Arsenal may not have been who they were pitted against in the next round.

When it comes to the bigger picture, the biggest boost is Manchester City, once again, drawing Real Madrid.

Pep Guardiola's side's face the Spanish heavyweights in the Bernabeu on Tuesday March 10, before hosting them on March 17, just five days before the League Cup final against Arsenal.

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While Arsenal will not be taking Leverkusen lightly, City clearly have the tougher deal when it comes to the draw. Having already beaten runaway Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich 3-1, the Gunners will feel confident about beating Leverkusen.

Kasper Hjulmand's side are enduring a disappointing domestic campaign, currently languishing in 6th position, just two years after winning the Bundesliga without losing a match. They only won three of their eight matches in the group phase, drawing three times and losing twice.

Arsenal and City are both playing their first-legs on Tuesday March 10, with the Gunners hosting Everton five days later.

However, the Cityzens have one day less preparation to face an improving West Ham away in their next match on Saturday March 14, a ground which has been a banana skin for City before.

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Out of the two sides, Arsenal will be more confident about taking a strong lead back to the Emirates Stadium in their first-leg against Leverkusen than City will be against Real Madrid.

If the Gunners win by two goals or more, Arteta will back some of his fringe players to finish the tie off at home, while Guardiola would surely feel uneasy about doing the same against Vinicius Jr, Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and co.

However, Arteta insisted they will not be taken the German side lightly. He said: "Well, we are very excited to play the next round.

"We have earned the right to be in a strong position, what we've done in the group stage and that's it. And now we need to start to analyse them and find ways to be better than them, to try to go through the tie."