Olympiacos create history in London with stunning triumph

For the first time in history, Arsenal failed to progress from a European tie after winning the first leg away from home, with Olympiacos condemning the Gunners to their maiden defeat of 2020.

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A night which entered the history books for a number of reasons. Following the first-leg defeat against Arsenal at the Karaiskakis Stadium, Olympiacos were regarded as clear outsiders for the return in London, but the Erythrolefki subsequently shocked their opponents with a stunning 2-1 triumph in extra time. During the second half, Pape Abou Cisse levelled the aggregate score with a thumping header, before Youssef El Arabi grabbed a last-gasp winner in extra time after Pierre Emerick Aubameyang had not long equalised for the hosts in acrobatic fashion. Olympiacos will now prepare to face Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League. 

This was the first time in history when Arsenal suffered elimination in a European competition after they had initially won the first leg away from home. Previously, the Gunners had always advanced after earning an advantage on the road in the first match, but Olympiacos have now snapped that impressive streak:

MAIDEN ARSENAL DEFEAT OF 2020

At the same time, Olympiacos became the first team to beat Arsenal in 2020, with Mikel Arteta’s men having previously tallied six victories and four draws in the opening 10 matches of the new calendar year. Enduring a tough campaign, Arsenal are well off the pace in the English Premier League, languishing in a lowly 10th position of the table with only eight wins from 28 games. 

This also marked Arteta’s second setback since becoming the head coach of Arsenal in late December.

FIFTH VICTORY FOR OLYMPIACOS AGAINST ARSENAL

Over the years, Olympiacos have consistently been tricky opponents for Arsenal, and that tradition continued this season as the Greeks dumped the English side out of the Europa League. Overall, Olympiacos have beaten Arsenal on five occasions in continental competitions, with only Bayern Munich and Barcelona having defeated the Londoners more often:

Interestingly, with 10 meetings in the books, Olympiacos and Arsenal are yet to play to a draw against each other.

OLYMPIACOS ACHIEVE 38TH EUROPEAN AWAY VICTORY

At the Emirates Stadium, Olympiacos achieved their 38th away victory in Europe, more than any other Greek club. Panathinaikos sit in second spot of the list with 31 victories on the road to their name.

Olympiacos have picked up seven away wins in the UEFA Champions League, seven in the Champions League preliminaries, 16 in the Europa League/UEFA Cup (qualifiers included) and eight in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup. The Erythrolefki will look to increase that tally to 39 when facing Wolves in England in the second leg of the Europa League Last 16.

It’s also worth noting that Olympiacos have only conceded one goal in the last 11 successive away games across all competitions. Pedro Martins’ troops are five points clear of second-placed PAOK in the Super League, and they will soon face the Dikefalos tou Vorra in the semi-finals of the Greek Cup. 

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