Tuesday Mar 07 2006 11:00
Arsenal midfielder Gilberto Silva believes Ronaldo will be Real Madrid's biggest threat when the two sides meet in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Real's Brazilian striker has been castigated by the club's fans for a string of poor performances this term, and was omitted from Saturday's derby success against Atletico Madrid.
However, Gilberto has no doubt abut his fellow countryman's class.
He told the Gunners' official website: "He has been criticised in Madrid by the press. But we cannot think about his form going into the game. He is a very intelligent man and a very intelligent player.
"He must just forget everything on the outside and do his best for Madrid. We cannot think this problem will affect him on the pitch."
Arsene Wenger's side go into the Highbury clash with a 1-0 lead from the first leg, but Gilberto is refusing to be over-confident about the final outcome of the tie.
"We need to be aware and concentrate," the 29-year-old added.
"It is very important that we keep our shape. If we think that we have done our job then it is a problem. Our team knows the importance of this game and we need to be the boss on the pitch.
"If we want to go through we will have to do more than we did in Madrid otherwise we will not win the game."
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