Arsene Wenger hailed Arsenal’s phenomenal 3-0 win against Olympiacos to defy the odds and progress into the knockout stages as one of his best European wins.
Olivier Giroud’s first hat-trick for the Gunners proved the difference in Greece, meaning the Arsenal boss has now advanced through the group stage of the UEFA Champions League in 16 consecutive seasons.
The Frenchman was thrilled with the win to pull off the great escape.
We had a perfect performance on the tactical and mental side too. Overall it was a real team performance. It is a fantastic achievement for us. When you look at who we’ve lost in the last three weeks, we’ve lost Coquelin, Cazorla and Alexis among other long-term injuries, not many people gave us a chance. We are a real team. In the dressing room this team is very close and you could see that again today. Yes, certainly [it is one of my best European wins] because we needed a perfect performance to score without conceding. That is not easy because they are a good side.
Arsenal’s hero, Olivier Giroud, has now scored 71 goals in 120 appearances for the north Londoners, heading home Aaron Ramsey’s cross in the first half, finishing coolly shortly after half-time and then completing his hat-trick from the penalty sport.
The maligned striker turned from villain in Zagreb when sent off, to hero in Piraeus and Wenger said he never doubted his character.
It was a perfect performance because he scored a header, one with a good combination thanks to a good pass by Campbell, and also a penalty on top of that. He was sometimes in uncomfortable positions but he fought like mad and he has shown skill and character. I always defended Olivier on the character side because he has always had something special on that front. He showed that in the game again today.
The remarkable turn around in fortunes for Giroud and Arsenal in Europe should be the perfect tonic to give them belief for the league as well as in the last 16.
Wenger says the team will come out of this stronger and that this could be Arsenal’s year in the Champions League.
We’ll see. At the moment I haven’t even looked at who we could get. We were so nearly out that I put all my focus into staying in this competition. The kind of performance tonight, in a very heated atmosphere, showed that we have great character. These games make the team stronger and this one certainly will. We needed something special and when you deliver something special it can create positive memories for the rest of the season. Maybe it’s a lucky year for us in the Champions League, you never know.
