Arsenal will be making the trip to Greece for their Round of 16 tie against Olympiacos on Thursday. If they manage to win or get an away goal here, it will put them in a good position when the second leg comes around. (For the Arsenal starting XI prediction, go here)
Apart from one injury, there is nothing new for manager Mikel Arteta to worry about, from a team fitness standpoint. Being in this kind of a situation without any suspensions, is good for the manager as it gives him many options to play around with.
The one player that might miss out is Emile Smith-Rowe, who suffered an injury at Leicester City. His injury is said to be not so significant, but the midfielder remains a doubt for this game, which certainly does weaken the overall midfield.
Arteta will be reminded of the way his players exited the tournament last season against the very same team that they will be facing now. Getting a win against Olympiacos is not always easy which makes this away leg all the more important.
What helps the teamโs cause is that they have looked good in Europe so far this season and hty will be confident of what they can achieve.
The inclusion of Martin Odegaard to the starting eleven has plugged an important gap that makes the team move along better. It will be the likes of Nicolas Pepe, Bukayo Saka and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang that will be called upon to provide the goals.
The North London club are always capable of producing that moment of magic and that is exactly what they will want to do on Thursday. They will want to put the tie to bed in the first leg if possible, so that they can be more relaxed when the Greek side visits London.
Arsenal know the gravity of the challenge they face and therefore they must be fully focused. They cannot afford any errors like what happened at the weekend as that could really hurt them tomorrow. If they can get the ball moving flowingly, the Gunners will have a good chance to win.
