Bruma says Arsenal have a ‘great player’ in their ranks, expects ‘great duel’ with him on Thursday

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Arsenal defender Cedric Soares has been praised by Olympiakos ace Bruma ahead of the Europa League last-16 first leg between the two sides on Thursday.

The Gunners dropped more points in the Premier League at the weekend and, as such, the Europa League increasingly looks like the best opportunity to secure Champions League football.

However, Arsenal will be wary of the threat posed by Olympiakos, who knocked Mikel Arteta’s side out of the competition just over a year ago.

The Greek giants have been bolstered by the arrival of Bruma on loan from PSV Eindhoven, as well as former Arsenal defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos.

And Bruma knows Cedric well, as the two played at Sporting Lisbon together and remain teammates at international level for Portugal.

“Cedric is a good friend and a great player,” Bruma told Goal.com. “I’ve known him for a long time.

“At Sporting we played on the same side, he was the right-back and I was the right forward.

“He taught me a lot when I was a young player and I have a lot to thank him for. I like him a lot, I care about him a lot and I wish him all the best.

“If we meet on the pitch Thursday it’s going to be a great duel.”

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Cedric has had a busy start to the year, making eight consecutive starts in all competitions before the Manchester City clash where Kieran Tierney made his return.

Although he was benched against Leicester and omitted from the Burnley matchday squad, Mikel Arteta clearly rates him highly and there’s a good chance he’ll feature against Olympiakos.