Arsenal Vs Olympiakos: 5 things we learned – Oh dear, oh dear
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 27: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) Nicolas Pepe of Arsenal FC looks on during the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg match between Arsenal FC and Olympiacos FC at Emirates Stadium on February 27, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
4. The Nicolas Pepe conundrum
For some slightly curious reason, this game revolved around Nicolas Pepe. Arsenal relentlessly attacked down the right side, almost force-feeding the Ivorian the ball and it felt as if the only way they would create a chance was through the £72 million man doing something special. And to his credit, he came very close to producing precisely that on several occasions.
But in each situation, he always fell short. It might have been a poor decision to not release a pass, a poorly played pass that misses its intended target, an overcomplicated attempt at a dribble that is foiled, a wasteful shot from distance, or an obsession to get the ball onto his left foot that meant he spurned several opportunities to shoot or pass with his right.
It was a microcosm of his season and the perfect illustration of the conundrum he poses. The talent is prodigious, and there are individual moments that portray as much. But the production just is not there, and at some point, something is going to have to go give.
Arsenal started their second leg in the Europa League Round of 32 against Greek side Olympiakos sluggishly, as if they believed they could waltz into the Emirates and roll on through thanks to their first-leg lead. They failed to ever snap out of first gear and were punished in heartbreaking fashion, conceding a last-minute goal to send them home. In the end, it was all that they deserved.</p>
<h2><a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pain-in-the-arsenal-podcast-on-arsenal-fc/id1314514440?ign-mpt=uo%3D4%26amp%3Buo%3D4&mt=2%22>Listen to the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal podcast here! — Emergency Podcast: Nightmare</a></h2>
<p>Here are five things we learned from <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/51623263">the disastrous 2-1 defeat</a>.</p>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 27: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) head coach Mikel Arteta of Arsenal FC gestures during the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg match between Arsenal FC and Olympiacos FC at Emirates Stadium on February 27, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>5. Mikel Arteta wanted to win the Europa League</h4>
<p>Unlike the tactical tinkering of Unai Emery, <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=mikel+arteta%22>Mikel Arteta</a> has a very defined way of playing. And he has a very clear pecking order in his mind that is relatively easy to determine, even without the privy of information that is discussed behind the scenes. And so, when he played the team that he did against Olympiakos, it was quite clear what he thought of the Europa League.</p>
<p>Arteta played as close to as his strongest side as he can. Sead Kolasinac was dropped due to injury and Alexandre Lacazette replaced Eddie Nketiah. That left a starting XI stocked full of ability, experience, and the best line-up that is currently available. There was no degrading of the Europa League here.</p>
<p>The Europa League is not the Champions League. Some managers rotate heavily for it as a result, focusing on their Premier League exploits before strengthening the midweek team later in the season. Not Arteta. He wanted to win the Europa League. Now, he won’t be able to.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 4. The Nicolas Pepe conundrum </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 27: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) Nicolas Pepe of Arsenal FC looks on during the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg match between Arsenal FC and Olympiacos FC at Emirates Stadium on February 27, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>4. The Nicolas Pepe conundrum</h4>
<p>For some slightly curious reason, this game revolved around <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=nicolas+pepe%22>Nicolas Pepe</a>. Arsenal relentlessly attacked down the right side, almost force-feeding the Ivorian the ball and it felt as if the only way they would create a chance was through the £72 million man doing something special. And to his credit, he came very close to producing precisely that on several occasions.</p>
<p>But in each situation, he always fell short. It might have been a poor decision to not release a pass, a poorly played pass that misses its intended target, an overcomplicated attempt at a dribble that is foiled, a wasteful shot from distance, or an obsession to get the ball onto his left foot that meant he spurned several opportunities to shoot or pass with his right.</p>
<p>It was a microcosm of his season and the perfect illustration of the conundrum he poses. The talent is prodigious, and there are individual moments that portray as much. But the production just is not there, and at some point, something is going to have to go give.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 3. Tempo, tempo, tempo </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">Arsenal’s German midfielder Mesut Ozil passes the ball during the UEFA Europa league round of 32 second leg football match between Arsenal and Olympiakos at the Emirates stadium in London on February 27, 2020. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS / AFP) (Photo by ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>3. Tempo, tempo, tempo</h4>
<p>I feel like a broken record. The ball must be moved at speed. It is vital for both playing out from the back, to prevent the opposition from easily pressing and forcing errant passes and for breaking down a low block, pulling opponent players out of position.</p>
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<p>And when Arsenal play well, they really do move the ball quickly. The passing is crisp, their collective first touch perfectly cushioning the ball to then release it early. Hesitations are limited, passes are not delayed, and if the chance to drive forward and exploit space is there, it is taken without err or caution.</p>
<p>Here, however, the Gunners played down to Olympiakos. The Greek side were keen to slow down the play. They took their time over restarts, they passed the ball slowly, they played tentatively, conservatively, with control their primary motive. But that does not mean that Arsenal had to play at their pace. The home side could — and should — have dictated the tempo.</p>
<p>On the sidelines, Mikel Arteta grew increasingly frustrated with his team, gesticulating, gesturing, shouting and hollering at his players to press harder without the ball and move it quicker when they won it back. It is not rocket science, and yet Arsenal so consistently forget it.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. Leaky defence must be fixed </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 27: Pape Abou Cisse of Olympiacos FC scores his team’s first goal during the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg match between Arsenal FC and Olympiacos FC at Emirates Stadium on February 27, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>2. Leaky defence must be fixed</h4>
<p>Like against Everton at the weekend, Arsenal conceded two horrendous goals. Unlike against Everton, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could not rescue them.</p>
<p>The first came directly from a corner. The blame is almost entirely <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=mesut+ozil%22>Mesut Ozil’s</a>. Arsenal employ a zonal marking scheme with blockers on the penalty spot to prevent opposing players from having a free run to attack the ball. Ozil was meant to block Pape Cisse. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was the other blocker and he does his job, slowing down the Olympiakos player. Ozil simply stands, watches, lets Cisse run free, and after a slight flick at the near post takes the ball away from Shkodran Mustafi’s head, nothing could be done.</p>
<p>The second goal was not much better. Arsenal cleared the initial corner relatively well, but when it came to resetting to deal with the ensuing cross, <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=david+luiz%22>David Luiz</a> got his bearings all wrong, letting the ball him, while <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/?s=sokratis%22>Sokratis was caught daydreaming, allowing Youssef El-Arabi to sneak in front of him and prod home the finish. Like always, simple defensive errors have cost Arsenal. They will not win anything until they fix the leaky defence, and it starts with new personnel.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 1. Nightmare </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 27: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) the player’s of Arsenal look dejected after the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg match between Arsenal FC and Olympiacos FC at Emirates Stadium on February 27, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Roland Krivec/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)</p>
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<h4>1. Nightmare</h4>
<p>Quite amazingly given how poor they have played for much of the season, entering the final stretch of the campaign, Arsenal still had a relatively decent opportunity of sneaking into the Champions League, either through an intensely competitive Premier League or in the Europa League. One of those routes is now not possible.</p><div class="widget fs_ads"> <div class="fs_ad_widget-ad" style="margin:0 auto; width: 300px;"> <div class="fs-ll-ad" data-ad-type="minutemedia_slideshow_inline_300x250__desktop__tablet" data-vendor="minutemedia">
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<p>The players knew how damaging this defeat was. It was etched across their faces as soon as Olympiakos scored the winner. Mikel Arteta picked his best team. There was a deep focus on winning the match and going far in the competition. Losing was not an option, and yet, thanks to some horrible passing, lackadaisical defending, and a contemptibly sluggish and complacent attitude, that is precisely what happened.</p>
<p>Very few players performed when needed. Arteta made some curious substitutions, including ending in a 3-5-2 with Nicolas Pepe at right wing-back. All in all, it was a shambles, just when Arsenal needed to unite and perform at their best.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="Arsenal Vs Olympiakos: Player ratings" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-player-ratings-nightmare/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-5-things-learned-oh-dear/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2020/02/27/arsenal-vs-olympiakos-player-ratings-nightmare/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> Arsenal Vs Olympiakos: Player ratings </a> </div>
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<p>Thursday night could not have gone much worse for Arteta and his players. As a result, the pressure is really on to prove the doubters wrong, respond accordingly, and sneak into the Champions League. What a nightmare!</p><!—pageview_candidate—></p>">
