Friday Frappé: Title race could prove helpful for Olympiacos

In this week’s edition of the Friday Frappé, AGONAsport’s Peter Katsiris takes a look at how the close title race in the Super League could be a massive boost for Olympiacos on the Europa League front in the new year.

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After parachuting into the UEFA Europa League courtesy of a Matchday 6 defeat of Red Star Belgrade, Olympiacos were paired with Arsenal in the Europa League Round of 32 earlier this week.

Slotted among the unseeded clubs in Monday’s draw, Olympiacos didn’t have the best fortune with their draw result but a change to the landscape of Greek football could keep the Erythrolefki hungry for European success in the new year.

Olympiacos remain neck and neck with PAOK at the summit of the Super League table as both sides refuse to give an inch to their title rivals. The energy from the title race might be seen as a detriment for an Olympiacos side trying to return to the summit in Greece after a two-year hiatus, but it’s perhaps more of a positive for Pedro Martins’ men.

It’s been a theme in the past for the Piraeus side that the club would wrap-up the calendar year with a strong run in Europe and domestically before returning to work sluggishly in the new year.

Olympiacos were usually afforded that luxury on the domestic scene thanks to a non-existent challenge for the Super League crown, but with that not the case this year it might be in Olympiacos’ best interest for the high-pressure fixtures to continue heading into the club’s two-leg showdown with Arsenal in February.

The current situation atop the Super League table suggests that Olympiacos’ fixture list from now until the end of the season will feature must-win games every week on the domestic front, but there’s no doubt that the highest stakes come in play in late February.

In the space of a week, Olympiacos will face Arsenal twice with a visit to PAOK sandwiched in between the club’s home-and-away clashes with the English side.

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