Arsenal will face Olympiacos in the first leg of their Europa League last 16 clash on Thursday. It will be a crucial week for the Gunners, who will face Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby after their Europa League clash.
Arsenal’s only chance of qualifying for the Champions League next season is by winning the Europa League, so Mikel Arteta will not take the competition lightly.
The Gunners have only won five of their last 13 matches in all competitions, however. They have not been consistent, and need to buck up in the coming months.
Arteta will hope his squad can cope with the Premier League and the Europa League fixtures.
Arsenal Team News
The Gunners are in pretty good shape with no major injuries. Nicolas Pepe, who struggled at Turf Moor last weekend, is expected to play over Willian.
Last-16 matchday – let's go! ✊
🆚 @olympiacosfc
🏆 @EuropaLeague
📍 Athens, Greece
🕗 8pm kick-off (UK)#UEL pic.twitter.com/L8WJ95esWM— Arsenal (@Arsenal) March 11, 2021
Hector Bellerin might start as the right-back and Gabriel Magalhaes, who has been solid in recent matches, could replace Pablo Mari at the back.
Predicted Arsenal Lineup vs Olympiacos (4-3-2-1)
Defence
Bernd Leno will start in goal for the Arsenal against Olympiacos. Arteta has made some changes at the heart of the defence so far, and we expect this trend to continue in Athens. Gabriel should start with David Luiz at the back.
We expect Kieran Tierney and Hector Bellerin to start as the left and right full-backs. Bellerin was rested against Burnley, so a lot will be expected of him come Thursday night.
Midfield
Predicted Arsenal Lineup vs Olympiacos
Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey are expected to feature, and play as the double midfield pivot. Thomas Partey will be influential in dictating the tempo of the match.
Partey and Xhaka will both need to do the defensive work and protect the back four as Olympiacos are a good team going forward. The runaway league leaders in the Super League have scored 61 times in their division.
Martin Odegaard could play as the number 10 in the Arsenal lineup. His creativity and ability to find the wingers will be crucial.
Attack
Arteta has a lot of things to consider before picking up the forward line-up. His upcoming match against the Spurs is vital. In this scenario, we predict Arteta to start Bukayo Saka and Pepe as two wingers on the left and right side respectively. Alexandre Lacazette will spearhead the attack as the lone striker.