Arsenal come up against Olympiacos in the first leg of the sides’ Europa League last-16 tie tonight, at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium in Greece.
The home team squeezed past PSV 5-4 on aggregate in the last round, while Arsenal pulled off a last-gasp comeback to eliminate Benfica in the last 32.
The Gunners were held by Burnley at the weekend in the Premier League, leaving them adrift of fourth place by 12 points.
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Mikel Arteta’s men are becoming increasingly difficult to predict, often following a good result with a poor one, and they need to have their wits about them if they are to take the win this week.
Pedro Martins’ side had a comfortable 3-0 victory over Lamia at the weekend and the Greek champions remain unbeaten in 10 matches in their home stadium, winning nine of them.
Olympiacos knocked out Arsenal in last season’s Europa League in a dramatic match where a strike from Youssef El-Arabi in the 120th minute sealed their 2-1 win and they’ll be looking to do the same tonight.
When is the match?
The game kicks off at 8pm GMT.
Where can I watch it?
The match will be televised live on BT Sport. BT Sport subscribers will be able to watch the match online via the website or BT app.
What is the team news?
Olympiacos have a number of injuries that put a question mark over their defence as centre-backs Ruben Semedo and Avraam Papadopoulos are both missing. Ousseynou Ba was also taken off after just 18 minutes against Lamia, leaving Martins with a big call to make at the back.
Ex-Arsenal player Sokratis may be fit for this game after struggling with a shoulder injury, while either Yann M’Vila or Mohamed Drager appear to be the most likely options to fill in at centre-back. Mady Camara was suspended for Olympiacos’ weekend win but will return this week, while El-Arabi is likely to be in the starting XI to haunt Arsenal.
For the Gunners, Emile Smith Rowe is suffering from a small hip problem and remains a major doubt for this match. Otherwise, Arsenal seem to be in good shape, with Nicolas Pepe hoping to start in this fixture over Willian and find the back of the net in this tie. Cedric Soares was rested entirely at the weekend so could be given the nod at right-back, while Gabriel Magalhaes could replace Pablo Mari at the back, although the Spaniard has been consistent in recent matches.
Confirmed line ups
Olympiacos: Sa; Lala, Sokratis, Ba, Reabciuk; M’Vila, Camara, Bouchalakis; Valbuena, Bruma, El Arabi
Arsenal: Leno; Bellerin, Gabriel, Luiz, Tierney; Partey, Xhaka; Willian, Odegaard, Saka; Aubameyang
Odds
Olympiacos: 14/5
Draw: 5/2
Arsenal: 19/20
Prediction
With the majority of Arsenal’s current side involved in that humiliating last-32 exit last year, they will be determined to take revenge over Olympiacos. The hosts’ defensive crisis could cause problems for Martins, but they are in good form at home, finding the net frequently. It should be a closely-fought first leg, but with Arsenal claiming an important away goal. Olympiacos 1-1 Arsenal.
