I was hoping for Laca to start this one. He brings us a bit of strength upfront. Something we may need against the likes of Sokratis
Nice goal by the rent boy (on loan i mean) 1-0 HT lead, should be 3 up though, hope it doesnt come back to haunt us!
If arsenal get to the final you know they be 3 0 down at half time then arsenal score 2 in the 2nd half then miss a open goal in the 95th min
ah well, I give up! Error after error, at what point do we start questioning Arteta and his substitutions?
Arteta with the bullshit substitutions as Always. Elneny really? Martinelli got 10 goals in his first Season - yet we see Willian ALL the time!
to be fair I did try to remove that comment when I realised he was also bringing on Pepe and Smith Rowe...whoops! Great goal by the way
Certainly would have taken that result before the game. We looked really fluid at times - but silly mistakes at the back are still there and need to be addressed
Great result in the end - a 3-1 win away in a knock-out game is not to be sniffed at. Realistically, we should be expecting to progress from here. They need 3 goals at The Emirates with no reply, so it's an uphill battle for them. Can't rule out our ability to self-destruct, though... I wasn't impressed with the overall performance. Felt we were sloppy in possession, and too casual after taking the lead. The error between Leno and Ceballos for their equaliser really aggravated me. However, we made amends and the result is the most important thing. Onto the NLD
Looked like Burnley all over again, when Ceballos lost the ball and they equalised, but credit to the lads, they stuck to the task and got their reward with a battling headed goal from Gabriel. And a sweet strike at the end from Elneny to put the icing on the cake. Big shout to Odergaard tonight, he was fantasic. Really pulled the strings in that ACM role. Let's hope we can sign him on a permanent deal in the summer
Also, special mention to the referee, who I felt had a good game. I was slightly irked by his inaction on the countless fouls on Saka, as he was being targeted a lot. However, he didn't buy any of the OIympiacos players' diving antics or excuses to go to ground, and tried to let the game flow. Every time they whinged, he never caved in. Was doing his best to allow actual football to be played, rather than stop-starting. He's much better than any English ref that's for sure!
Odengaard impressed me yesterday. He had a bad start, gave the ball away a few times then missed a decent chance but you could tell he was annoyed with himself and his worked rate increased. Scored a great goal and did a huge amount of closing down/pressing. The Leno mistake really annoyed me. I know I shouldnt still be going on about this but Martinez would not have had a problem in that situation. Much as I like Leno as a keeper for the style we play (passing out from the back etc) Martinez was the better fit.
