Brilliant team performances helps us dig ourselves out of a hole! by KM
Well it was that night again for Arsenal. The one that in the past five years that was usually in late February or early March, where we had to do the improbable. As history goes we underestimated some of the games and we had a mountain to climb, but this time Olympiakos was not just sitting in the clouds.
We did it this time. And football is often about how quickly can you forget the mistakes and grab the chances in front of you and yesterday I saw a team that sat by its words. We were on the ropes, but we responded with a brilliant hat-trick from Giroud. What a time for your first one, hey?
On to the game, it started with a home storm coming our way, which we weathered and as time passed by we managed to find our feet. Campbell made a good run with a great ball to Flamini, who did ever so well to stretch to it, but the crossbar denied us, but soon afterwards we were ahead.
Ozil made another unbelievable pass to Ramsey whose cross found the head of Giroud and the goalkeeper made a mess of it on the near post to give us the lead. In all fairness this was the bit of luck that Olympiacos had against us and Zagreb in all of the games, which this time was paid back in full, and that goal made it as the only one through the interval.
The second half started with Giroud falling to the ground giving all Arsenal fans a heart attack, but the guy stepped it off and 50 seconds after coming back, found himself of the end of a lovely Joel Campbell hold up (after another Ozil pass) and Giroud’s run paid off in a second goal!
Petr Cech was to the rescue after a lovely effort of a Greek player, but the tides had turned, and Monreal with another sublime game, helped us on to a penalty, which Giroud slotted home to make amends for his dismissal in Zagreb.
This win is a huge sigh of relief for everyone around Arsenal. I prefer if we don’t leave it like this each year, but we for once refused to give up, and after beating and losing to each team in our group we finished second behind Bayern Munich.
Interestingly enough we scored in each of our group stage games and won all our games where we didn’t concede, so if we deploy Cech on goal and make it tight at the back, we’ll be up for it against any side!
For me the circumstances make the win all the more important. We had no Sanchez, no Coquelin and Cazorla, and we were under huge pressure. Just look at the rape-fest that Louis Van Gaal has to weather for United’s group stage dismissal.
It was so important to win and show Europe that England is not yet a fading force. The media will slaughter any English club if it fails to deliver. As it stands the draw features Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Zenit and Wolfsburg.
Not the greatest lot to chose from, but apart from Barcelona and depending on the form of Real the other teams are ones we’d have a decent chance to beat. As ever thought, the most important game is always the next one and we have an away day at Aston Villa of all teams.
Make no mistake, they’ll be up for a challenge, because they either start putting points on the table or they either welcome the Championship. It’s time for a well deserved rest for the players. This time they really pulled one off.
Have a supreme week!
Konstantin
Well done all around. I counted us out after the first two games and have been very critical of Wenger’s transfer policy. Now focus shifts to Villa. 3 pts. No excuses. COYG!!!
I think if we avoid Barcelona we have a favorable chance of advancing. Real Madrid is not the same with Benitez IMO. I would actually rather play Real Madrid at this moment in time than Atletico.
Giroud is the man of the moment and non of u so called fans commenting are interested in praising him lyk he deserves, but let arsenal lose or draw nd Giroud wld be treated lyk a defender nd goalkeeper combined with insults.. Hypocrites maybe
I will be thumbing down every comment without a word of praise for GIROUD
Stop being bias fans on here.. Pls for once support Arsenal.. Always criticizing Giroud for everything..
And admin why does my comments take forever to be posted cos i have been on here for a pretty long while.. plss tell me if its biasness ??
Luckily Olympiakos were not very clinical in front of goal. If feel if Walcott gains his fitness, Sanchez will have it difficult dislodging him from the LW. Theo didn’t score or assist yesterday, but his movement was fantastic.
Sanchez is 10X the player Theo is regardless of fitness or form.
Heck Campbell is a better all around player @ the moment and shouldn’t lose his place was AS returns from injury.
Theo should rotate with OG, he is a liability defensively on the wings.
No way should OG have to rotate. The CF position for Theo is like Ramsey playing RW.
I hope Campbell can continue his form because that would be a huge plus to have him as back up.
I think if he continues to grow this way, he should start ahead if Ox on RW. Campbell has shown more development in 5 games than Ox has shown in 50 games
Couldnt agree more, Ox is the most overhyped, overrated Arsenal player in recent memory.
JC is the better player, play him
He is very talented, but slow in the head. I feel srry for him coz his motevation is kaputt.
@RVP
As back up for who? Ramsey or Theo? For real? Joel is head and shoulders above both skill wise.
JC, Santi and Ozil are the most technically gifted players on the squad but Theo and Ramsey are, well Bri…..members of the UK?
With that said Ramsey played pretty well yesterday
Just want to say that Bergkamp is overraed by us Arsenal fans, his goal record is terrible. Here’s an example:
In the Champions League
Bergkamp 40 appearances 7 goals
Bendtner 24 Appearences 9 goals
Lol Adebayor has more goals and Assists in the premier league then Bergkamp
Henry, Giroud, Fabregas, Walcott, Adebayor, RVP, Podolski, Ramsey, Bendtner all have more UCL goal then him
Hmmmm – looking at just the numbers don’t say everything. I take it you have never lost a game in the Champions league yourself for instance.
Hello there my fellow gooners, this is selfish and off tropic, however Im trying to get some tickets to watch arsenal. Ive supported them since i was a young boy but Have never manged to see them play, like many. However i was wandering if anyone on here new of way to get tickets either home or away. It seems blooody difficult.
Christmas tidings and much love from a frustrated gunner
I am not going to get overexcited about our last win. Simply because I am probably the only one on this site who actually believes in this team. So for me the result was somehow expected but can you all finally acknowledge that what Wenger pulled out with a heavily depleted team was nothing short of exceptional? Just for the game last night, I am not asking the moon here. You have time to bash Wenger again and opportunities are there for you to take. But just once, just for this game acknowledge that it was genius how they prepared the game. THIS, my friends is what it means to do your job under extremely high pressure and still deliver the result.
?
conversely should we have been in that position had wenger fielded a full strength side in our two opening games? or instructed our players to maintain possession after going 2-1 up at home against olympiakos? I appreciate the herculean effort we produced but we should have been favourites to progress from the group when it was drawn anyway and after witnessing the monaco game last season, not to mention going three nil up against anderlecht only to draw 3-3 you could forgive many for not having unwavering belief in this jekyll and hyde side. Good result and happy for AW and the team but a bit of perspective necessary.
Not sure what you mean full strength. Ospina for Cech? And doesn’t this contradict your point? We fielded half team last night and we went through 3-0 against a team that was much better positioned to take the 2nd place. We were favorites to progress and we delivered on the promise.
well at the end of the day, ospina was calamitous in the game against olympiakos and it certainly didn’t instil much belief in the defence in front of him. We were forced to field a weakened side due to injuries, I’ll give credit to AW for his belief in our second string players but had we lost last night a lot of people would have again addressed the issue of not buying cover in the summer and rightly so.
Whilst flamini has been a valiant servant for Arsenal he is hardly the type of holding midfielder that will take us to trophies, but I’ll be glad if he proves me wrong. In any case we do always seem to make it more difficult than it should be and when this occurs we provide stellar performances, previous bayern games, our monaco game away from home, coming back from 2-0 down against hull idk but to me it shows a lack of preparation/concentration for the big occasions.
No one (Flamini included) envisioned Flamini as holding midfielder. He is there and he must comply with the rigors of the position he’s covering. As long as he’s playing decent there won’t be an issue.
And yes, this is it : focus in the field. We did not had a stellar performance but because everyone focused on the job being done we came out on top. You don’t need big money players (although it is always an advantage) to do this simple job. You need players being busy with the game. Want proof? Look at the EPL table. See who’s leading at the moment.
I understand but when the winning margins can be as small as goal difference, ensuring that you have adequate personnel enhances the chances of lifting silverware come the end of the season. In any case we saw how well balanced our team was after the introduction of coquelin and we also witnessed the decline of arteta and flamini last season.
Why we didn’t let one of them go and get in a better holding midfielder actually beggars belief for a team that consistently accumulates injuries over the course of the season. We were in a prime position to win the league until ramsey got injured and our whole team fell apart, I’m just hoping we don’t regret that one signing that is so vital to the balance of our play this season
@Budd
Mighty big of you dude to make that assumption…
Aren’t we all here making assumptions? Speculations? They are just that. Luckily.
You are special we know. Genius? Escpaping self inflicted failuare is nothing to be proud of. lol
That’s called UCL Round of 16. But I guess you have seen Arsenal under Wenger delivering this year after year and it gets boring. I was not so fortunate 30 years ago. Good for you being born on a high horse.
Benzema is suspended from the national side….!!!!
With qualification secured last nice in Greece and the financial fruits of such labor considered what are the thoughts of Arsenals January transfer window ambitions?
Although they are unsubstantiated rumors what are the odds Le Prof spends a little chedda on….
Wanyama
Isco
Icardi
Insigne
Nueves
Jesse
Carvalho
You need to flush out this transfer obsession out of your head. The most important thing for Arsenal right now is to get a result at Aston Villa, and hope Chelsea get their customary one point per game against Leicester.