Arsenal’s 3-1 victory last week means this tie should be dead and buried, but Mikel Arteta can’t take any chances and there will be some nerves if Olympiacos can get the first goal.
Winning the Europa League is still Arsenal’s only realistic hope of Champions League football next year, so it leaves Mikel Arteta with some interesting choices to make tonight.
The squad will need some rotation as this game is sandwiched between big matches with Spurs and West Ham, while it’s also likely that the Greek side will need to come out and attack.
Ideally Arsenal need to be solid at the back while having the pace to catch them out on the counter attack, and that’s reflected in the line-up tonight:
? Team news is in…
?? @HectorBellerin returns
?? @ElNenny starts
?? @Auba leads the line? #UEL
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) March 18, 2021
The midfield three of Xhaka, Ceballos and Elneny is a more defensive option with Odegaard staying on the bench, but there should be plenty of room for Aubameyang and Pepe to use their pace to cause problems.
It looks like a pretty solid selection and the general reaction is positive, but there are a few gutted fans who were hoping to see Gabriel Martinelli get a chance from the start tonight:
Arteta can easily play Martinelli as LW/RW, so that ESR can play at 10. but no, Arteta chose to play Ceballos at 10 ?? while ESR is literally available. Ceballos always dropped disasterclass in every of his last couple of performances. Arteta loves to overcomplicate himself ? https://t.co/s7yvDAQ81t
— Devia (@deviapspt) March 18, 2021
Bruh PLEASE let Martinelli have a go ?
— Martinelli_SZN (@MartinelliSZN1) March 18, 2021
No Martinelli again what is going on?????
— Emil Ericsson (@emilericsson02) March 18, 2021
What does Martinelli have to do to start? https://t.co/9TiwXXvbtZ
— ProjectPartey (@ProjectTeye) March 18, 2021
If Martinelli doesn’t come off the bench we riot….jk……unless #COYG
— LT_AFC (@LT_AFC) March 18, 2021
Martinelli should’ve started ?
— Passa?? ? (@Sakanellii) March 18, 2021
Hopefully he’ll get a chance to come on fairly early if the tie is completely put to bed, but he’ll be gutted not to get the chance to start tonight.
Whilst its unlikely the a mediocre Olympiacos can spring a surprise Arteta seems determined to put out as week a side as possible.Its all very well resting the likes of Partey and Saka but how do Cebellos,Bellerin and Elneny merit inclusion?Why is Martinelli still on the bench?
Momentum is crucial and this is not a side that’s equipped to do little else other than revert to type and pass the ball backwards and sideways.
Arteta’s continuing knack of complicating life and believing that certain players are more capable than they actually are means that this team will never quite fulfill it’s potential.
Axe him out of the managing roll, he lacks experience and being too sentimental with fixtures.
Why will Cebalos deserve to play and Martinelli never played.
What a awful fixtures, XHAKA, ELNENY AND CEBALOS in one match and he’s expecting good result?
Arteta please no Martinelli no Cebalos henceforth.
Enough of your Spanish brotherhood pranks.
Martinelli was in the team before he Mikel Arteta came and Arteta leave before Martinelli.
he’s sentiments on players is unbearable now.
Arteta team selections and tactical play, if at all he has one, is not better than a coach in English Championship.
Arsenal cannot progress with a regressive coach like Arteta.
Can Arteta,, with his apologetic prematch excuses, defend why two terrible players, Auba and CebalLOSS, lasted 57 and 90 minutes while an hungry and committed striker like Matinelli was on the bench.