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[Player ratings] Arsenal 0-1 Olympiacos: Aubameyang woeful for misfiring Gunners
A below-par Arsenal lost the second leg 0-1 at the Emirates but progress to the quarter-finals of the Europa League 3-2 on aggregate.
We were below our best for much of the first half and missed a couple of great opportunities to open the scoring. Olympiacos grew in confidence and broke the deadlock just after half time when Youssef El-Arabi’s shot deflected off Gabriel and past Bernd Leno for 0-1.
Arsenal improved when Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard came on and we had plenty of chances to put the tie to bed with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang spurning a number of opportunities.
However, we failed to find the back of the net so lost the second leg 0-1 but progress to the quarter-finals 3-2 on aggregate.
Here are my ratings:
Leno 6/10 | Big save to deny El-Arabi early on but could do nothing about his deflected goal.
Bellerin 5/10 | Poor. Failed to link-up with Pepe down the flank and was no threat at all going forward. Decent enough defensively. Subbed.
Luiz 5/10 | A disappointing performance. Should have done more to close down El-Arabi for his goal and let the Moroccan go clean through in the first half.
Gabriel 6/10 | A little unlucky with the deflection for their goal and was good on the ball at times.
Tierney 6/10 | Not at his best, like most of his team mates. Tried to get forward when he could but looked a little tired in the second half.
Xhaka 6/10 | Solid enough but took his time to take control of the game. Only really found his groove when Partey came on.
Elneny 5/10 | A disappointing display. Worked hard as usual but had very little effect on the game. Subbed.
Ceballos 5/10 | Failed to impress in a slightly more advanced role. Lost possession for the Olympiacos goal. Subbed.
Smith Rowe 6/10 | Not his best performance. Linked up well a few times and was move involved when he moved into the No.10 role.
Pepe 7.5/10 | Arsenal most dangerous player and he worked his socks off too. Unlucky to see a goal-bound effort deflect off Smith Rowe and over the bar and spurned a great chance to score when he fired straight at the keeper.
Aubameyang 5/10 | Should have had a hat-trick. Missed a great chance to open the scoring in the 20th minute when he blazed over, dinked one wide when clean through in the second half before missing another huge chance late on.
Subs:
Partey 6/10 | Made some nice driving runs forward which lead to a couple of chances but a few sloppy passes too.
Odegaard 6.5/10 | Made a difference as he added a creative edge in the final third. Smashed over the bar when well-placed to make it 1-1.
Martinelli 6.5/10 | Great to see him back on the pitch. Superb work set-up Auba for a huge chance.
Chambers N/A |