European Football in February more than a trend for Olympiacos
Olympiacos’ consistency in Europe for more than a decade now has meant the Erythrolefki have achieved a level of consistency no other Greek club has managed before.
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As Olympiacos prepare to face Arsenal in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League Round of 32 tie on Thursday night, the Erythrolefki will make their 11th appearance in the knockout rounds of European competition over the last 13 seasons.
Perhaps it’s not a feat that matters much to clubs from Europe’s top leagues, but considering that Super League sides typically fall flat on the continent it’s certainly an achievement for Olympiacos and their fans to be proud of.
While the Piraeus giants have for the most part started their European adventures in the UEFA Champions League, success in Europe’s premier competition has generally meant a spot in the Europa League knockout rounds after the turn of the calendar.
Olympiacos’ unmatched run of reaching European knockouts began in the 2007/2008 season when the Erythrolefki picked up points in five out of six games to progress from their Champions League group behind group winners Real Madrid. A date with Chelsea in the Round of 16 with Chelsea remained tight after a 0-0 draw in Piraeus in the first leg, but Olympiacos were put to the sword by the eventual runners-up in the return fixture in London.
The following season, Olympiacos’ European campaign got off to a rocky start when the club were dealt an early exit from the Champions League by Cypriot side Anorthosis in the third qualifying round. However, the club parachuted into the UEFA Cup group stage and with emphatic wins over Benfica and Hertha Berlin, Olympiacos managed a spot in the Round of 32. A tricky tie against French side Saint-Etienne would see Olympiacos bow-out of the competition shortly after the competition restarted in February.
Olympiacos were back in the Champions League knockouts in 2009/2010 after managing to progress through two rounds of qualifying before emerging from a group that included Arsenal, AZ Alkmaar, and Standard Liege. A meeting with yet another French side in the Round of 16, however, spelt the end for Olympiacos’ run as the club went down 3-1 on aggregate against Bordeaux.
After a turbulent domestic campaign the year prior, Olympiacos were forced to qualify for the Europa League in 2010/2011 but after conceding a costly away goal against Maccabi Tel Aviv the Erythrolefki were bounced from the competition following a defeat in the return leg. Olympiacos’ early exit marked the first time since the 1996/1997 season that there would be no European group stage football in Piraeus.
It wasn’t long before Olympiacos found their feet again in Europe, however, as the club were back in the Champions League group stage in 2011/2012. Ironically, Mathieu Valbuena’s stunning goal for Marseille sent the French side through to the Round of 16 alongside Arsenal while Olympiacos pipped Borussia Dortmund for a spot in the Europa League Round of 32. Back-to-back 1-0 wins over Rubin Kazan helped Olympiacos advance to the Round of 16 before falling to Ukrainian outfit Metalist Kharkiv on away goals.
Olympiacos once again parachuted to the Europa League Round of 32 in 2012/2013 when the club finished third in a Champions League group that included Arsenal, Schalke, and Montpellier. Paired with an in-form Levante side in the Europa League, Olympiacos crashed out of the competition in the Round of 32 after a 3-0 defeat in Spain put the tie well out of reach for the Erythrolefki.
It was in the Champions League where Olympiacos would make the knockout rounds during the 2013/2014 season. Despite two defeats to Paris St-Germain in the group stage, three out of four wins in games against Benfica and Anderlecht saw Olympiacos advance the Round of 16 for a clash with English giants Manchester United. Despite a 2-0 win in the home leg, Olympiacos were toothless in the away leg and ultimately crashed out of the competition following a 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford.
A tough draw for the group stage of the 2014/2015 Champions League group stage saw Olympiacos paired with recent runners-up Atletico Madrid, Italian giants Juventus, and Sweden’s Malmo. Despite a shock win over Atletico on Matchday 1, Olympiacos could only muster third place in the group and a spot in the Europa League Round of 32. A disastrous defeat on the road in Ukraine put Olympiacos against the ropes in their tie with Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk and that ultimately spelt the end for Olympiacos a week later in the return leg.
It was a similar story one year later when Olympiacos finished third in a Champions League group that featured Bayern Munich, Arsenal, and Dinamo Zagreb. Finishing third in the group after a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal on the final matchday, Olympiacos setup a Europa League Round of 32 clash with Anderlecht. Despite squaring the tie in the second leg, Olympiacos would go on to concede two goals in extra time before bowing out 3-1 on aggregate.
Olympiacos were back in the Europa League in 2016/2017 season after being bounced from the Champions League third qualifying round by Hapoel Be’er Sheva. Progressing from a group that included APOEL, Astana, and Young Boys, Olympiacos faced Turkey’s Osmanlispor in the Round of 32. Getting the better of their Turkish rivals in a 3-0 aggregate win, Olympiacos were handed their marching orders from the competition by another Turkish side in the Round of 16 as Besiktas cruised to a 5-2 aggregate win.
In 2017/2018, Olympiacos returned to the Champions League football after beating Balkan rivals Partizan and Rijeka en route to the group stage. However, it wasn’t a pleasant return for Olympiacos as the club were paired with Barcelona, Juventus and Sporting Lisbon. In one of the club’s worst campaigns of all-time, Olympiacos finished bottom of the group for the first time since the 2006/2007 season – effectively missing out on a spot in the knockout round of either competition for the first time in seven years.
After a third-place finish in Greece the previous, Olympiacos were limited to a run in the Europa League qualifying in 2018/2019. After navigating past Luzern and Burnley in qualifying, Olympiacos were paired with AC Milan, Real Betis, and Luxembourgish upstarts Dudelange. Needing a win on the final matchday of the group stage, Olympiacos managed a 3-1 win over Milan to punch a ticket to the knockout round for a meeting with Ukraine’s Dynamo Kyiv. Conceding two away goals in the first leg were decisive in the end as Olympiacos threw caution to the win in the second leg, allowing Kyiv to wrap-up the tie for a 3-2 aggregate win.
This year’s aforementioned campaign started in the Champions League of course, but the road to the group stage alone was Olympiacos’ longest qualifying campaign to date. Dispatching Viktoria Plzen, Basaksehir, and Krasnodar saw Olympiacos enter the group stage as one of the journey clubs from qualifying and were paired with Bayern Munich, Tottenham, and Red Star Belgrade. A win on the final day against Red Star came from the penalty spot courtesy of Youssef El Arabi as Olympiacos marched on to the Europa League Round of 32. Despite managing to remain alive as late as February on so many occasions, Olympiacos will be looking to progress past the Round of 32 in the Europa League for just the third time.
