Olympiakos vs. Arsenal: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream, TV Info
Arsenal’s date with destiny has arrived. The Gunners travel to Greece to face Olympiakos, with both sides knowing that only one can progress to the knockout phase of the Champions League.
If the Gunners are to leapfrog Olympiakos into the next round, they must match or better the Greek side’s 3-2 win at the Emirates Stadium. A 1-0 or 2-1 win would be insufficient—it must be a win scoring three, or a win a by two clear goals.
That’s a big ask. Olympiakos can afford to sit deep and look to defend, whereas Arsenal know that the concession of a single goal will leave them needing three away from home. The game will be on a knife-edge for the entire 90 minutes.
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Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey insists Arsenal have a handle on the task ahead. He told Arsenal.com:
"Of course but we have to choose the right times to do that but we will always create opportunities – just hopefully we can stop them, keep a clean sheet and grab a couple of goals ourselves,” the Wales midfielder said.
We know what we have to do and we believe we have enough quality to create the opportunities and score. Hopefully we can do that and keep a clean sheet.
"
The two opponents will certainly be familiar with each other. This is the fourth time since 2009 that these clubs have been drawn in the same group. Historically, home advantage has been hugely important: prior to Olympiakos’ win at the Emirates Stadium earlier this season, each of the preceding six meetings between the two teams had gone the way of the home side.
Date: Wednesday, December 9
Time: 7.45 p.m. GMT/2.45 p.m. ET
Location: Karaiskakis Stadium, Piraeus
Television coverage: BT Sport Europe / BT Sport Europe HD (U.K. only), FOX Sports 2 (U.S. only)
Streaming: BT Sport App (U.K. only), FOX Soccer 2 Go (U.S. only)
Form
Olympiakos
W (0-3) vs. Panathinaikos
L (4-0) vs. Bayern Munich
W (3-1) vs. Asteras Tripolis
W (0-4) vs. Panegialios
W (3-4) vs. Panthrakikos
Arsenal
D (1-1) vs. Tottenham
L (2-1) vs. West Brom
W (3-0) vs. Dinamo Zagreb
D (1-1) vs. Norwich
W (3-1) vs. Sunderland
Olympiakos are 13 games into their domestic league calendar, and have won every fixture thus far. Although they lost their last European outing against Bayern Munich, they’re in a rich vein of form on home soil.
Arsenal have been stumbling domestically of late, although they managed to arrest that slump with the 3-1 victory over Sunderland at the weekend. After a disastrous November, the Gunners are hoping to get back on track as they head into the frantic festive period.
The Managers
Olympiakos coach Marco Silva is not a man short of confidence. After his team beat Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium back in September, he told Jonathan Green of The Star that their fearless approach was what helped them make history:
"The most important thing was for the players to give everything they had, to believe in themselves and never be scared.
We were never scared, even when Arsenal scored. We always respect our opponents but we were never scared and never thought we couldn't make it.
"
That same courage will be invaluable at the Karaiskakis Stadium.
Meanwhile in London, Arsene Wenger has reminded Arsenal’s players of their impressive recovery against Monaco in last season’s Champions League. Although their result at the Stade Louis II was not quite enough to see them scrape past the principality club, it’s a good blueprint to follow in Greece. Wenger told the Daily Mail:
"I want to win and qualify. Our job is to win the next game and do what is needed. The one positive thing is we know exactly what to do.
We have to go from the start and go for it. Most of the time, when we have been to Olympiacos, we have not had a lot to do because we had already qualified.
This time it is the opposite. The result at Monaco (last season) will help us but it is a different game and let's see if we can get a result.
"
The troubling truth for Wenger is that a result in itself will not be good enough. Arsenal must ensure they win by the requisite margin to secure progression.
Team News
Olympiakos
Esteban Cambiasso has overcome an injury worry and should be able to start. His presence in the team will probably force Luka Milivojevic onto the substitutes bench.
Former West Brom man Brown Ideye charged with leading the line against the Gunners. He will have a point to prove having failed to make a significant impact in English football.
Predicted Olympiakos line-up (4-2-3-1): Roberto Jimenez Gago; Omar Elabdellaoui, Alberto Botia, Dimitris Siovas, Leandro Salino; Esteban Cambiasso, Kostas Fortounis; Patjam Kasami, Seba, Felipe Pardo; Brown Ideye
Arsenal
Arsenal’s team is relatively easy to predict, given the lack of options at Wenger’s disposal. With seven players sidelined, Arsenal are likely to keep the same team that saw off Sunderland at the weekend.
The one major decision to make is about Theo Walcott, who returned from a calf problem in Arsenal’s last fixture. With the Gunners chasing goals, Wenger may be tempted to parachute him directly into the team. However, it may be too soon to throw Walcott into the fray from kick-off—another injury set-back could be incredibly costly. Instead, Wenger may look to keep him in reserve, allowing him to inject some pace and penetration to the side in the game’s latter stages.
Predicted Arsenal line-up (4-2-3-1): Petr Cech; Hector Bellerin, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal; Mathieu Flamini, Aaron Ramsey; Joel Campbell, Mesut Ozil, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain; Olivier Giroud
Players to Watch
Olympiakos: Esteban Cambiasso
Premier League fans had the pleasure of watching Cambiasso in action last season. Although Leicester City appear to be coping fine without him, he remains an intelligent and influential presence in the midfield.
His role against Arsenal is clear: stop the ball from reaching the Gunners’ arch-creator, Mesut Ozil. Cambiasso will look to use all of his experience to keep Wenger’s men at bay.
Arsenal: Mesut Ozil
The German playmaker is arguably the form player in the Premier League, and will look to translate that form to the European stage in Greece. He scored on Arsenal’s last Champions League outing against Zagreb, and will be desperate to replicate the feat and keep the Gunners in the competition.
A player of Ozil’s gifts deserves to be in the latter stages of the Champions League. This is his chance to ensure he and his team-mates are there.
James McNicholas is Bleacher Report's lead Arsenal correspondent and is following the club from a London base throughout 2015/16. Follow him on Twitter here.
