MIKEL ARTETA left Arsenal fans' hearts in their mouths with a training ground tackle on one of their few fit forwards.
The Spaniard got involved in a rondo drill in the north Londoners' final training session for the second leg of their semi-final against Real Madrid on Wednesday.
And he upped the intensity of the drill by sticking it on on-loan forward , who is one of the club's few fit forwards.
Arteta slid in with his right foot after played the ball to the loanee.
And he came dangerously close to crunching the England international.
Footage of the incident spread like wildfire on social media.
One of the Emirates faithful said: “24 hours before [the] biggest game of [the] season and our manager is sliding into tackles.
“He's a lunatic.”
Another said: “Does he know our biggest game of the season is tomorrow ????!!!!!!”
And another said: “[Can't believe] I'm seeing Arteta attempt slide tackles during a rondo a day before the biggest game of his managerial career.”
Seconds after coming dangerously close to rattling into Sterling, Arteta found himself on the receiving end of a nutmeg.
And his troops were quick to remind him that he'd have to do a press-up forfeit for allowing himself to get megged.
will take a three-goal advantage to the Bernabeu courtesy of a stunning 3-0 win over the European giants last week.
But Arteta and his charges aren't resting on their laurels, with the retired midfielder saying: “It's on nights like this, that you can write your own history.
“It came from the collective and individual quality of our players. And now we have a lot more to give.
“We're going to enjoy the win but we know it's half-time and we're going to have to be even better in Madrid.”
