European dream still going amidst World panic

AGONAsport’s Olympiacos contributor, Theo Bouras, talks about Olympiacos’ performance against Wolves in the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 in the middle of an international time of anxiety, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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We are living in unprecedented times. The World cannot avoid the terror; it’s on your local news stations, your social media feeds, and your favorite sports websites. Last Thursday, Olympiacos were called upon to compete in a challenging situation. Not only was the opponent – Wolverhampton Wanderers – one of the fittest teams in England, but the Erythrolefki needed to play in front of an empty Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium in the middle of an international time of anxiety.

This team will not give up

The English side were traveling to Piraeus with a lot of hype; the Wanderers are in sixth place in the English Premier League and have consistently been on top of Tottenham and Arsenal (Olympiacos’ two other English opponents this season) in the standings. To give you all an idea of how deep Wolverhampton is, we must look no further than their acquisition of former Olympiacos winger Daniel Podence. The Portuguese speedster was a key player for Pedro Martins, but in England, he often finds himself on the bench.

Wolverhampton boss, Nuno Espirito Santos, often gives his opponents space and attacks on a lethal counter-attack. The Erythrolefki had the ball possession but were unfortunately stifled by the Wanderers’ defense. Even though things might have looked bleak for the host side in the 28th minute when central defender Ruben Semedo received a red card, the Legend remained strong. It has to be said that Semedo has been out of form since his injury and continues to struggle. At this point in time, the two best central defenders at Martins’ disposal are Ousseynou Ba and Pape Abbou Cissé.

Even with the one-man advantage, the English side did not create many scoring opportunities as the 44-time Greek champions remained organized. With the odds seemingly stacked against them, the Gavros opened up the scoring with a beautiful setup from Guilherme and a cheeky finish by Youssef El-Arabi. Guilherme is slowly returning to fine form after his scary foot injury in December, and El-Arabi continues to pump balls to the back of the net.

Even though the Wanderers had a fluky bounce go their way in the tying goal, Olympiacos showed they can keep up with them. The return leg in England will be wide open.

What next?

It is difficult to imagine what comes next. The entire sports world is in shutdown mode. The Euro Cup will most definitely be suspended until December or even June 2021. Olympiacos have a commanding lead in the Greek Super League standings and await the second leg of the Europa League Round of 16 in England.

Nobody knows what the next couple of weeks or months will look like; some optimists are saying games will resume on May 1st. Some, more conservative, are saying June while some figure the season might be canceled altogether.

On a night where football was the last thought on anybody’s mind, Olympiacos continued to display a perseverance and grit that they have showcased all season long. The European dream is far from over – for now.

Image Source: to10.gr

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