Petr Cech confident Arsenal remain grounded ahead of Valencia return leg

Petr Cech is adamant Arsenal will keep their feet on the ground in Thursday’s Europa League semi-final second-leg clash with Valencia.

And the veteran goalkeeper insists he is ready for the game despite not playing regularly this season.

The Gunners travel to the Mestalla defending a 3-1 lead from the first leg in north London last week.

Cech, 36, played in that game having been reduced to playing in the Europa League campaign in his final season before his retirement.

The former Chelsea goalkeeper, who could yet face his old side in the Europa League final in Baku on May 29, believes Arsenal will not capitulate having earned a lead heading into the return fixture.

“We keep our feet on the ground and we know that tomorrow is another difficult 90 minutes,” he said.

“We gave ourselves a two-goal cushion, but you know, two goals with the away goals now is an advantage but it’s not a decisive advantage.

“We can see that in the past and we can see it in the future, ties will get overturned with that deficit because football is about that. We respect the opponent and it will be very difficult.”

Cech has had to deal with playing second fiddle to Bernd Leno in Unai Emery’s Premier League side and has been used solely in cup competitions since September.

But, with Arsenal’s hopes of a return to the Champions League now all but resting on winning the Europa League this season, Cech insists he is still raring to go.

“I think the key is in training,” he replied when asked about the difficulty in finding form when you are not playing on a regular basis.

“You keep training at your best and together with my experience, you prepare during the week and even if you play regularly, the key still lies in training.

“If you prepare well then you’ll play well and with all the experience I have, I don’t feel a big difference. I feel prepared for every game.”